The Concept of Gamification

Gamification is a methodology that refers to the application of what constitutes as game dynamics, mechanics, and features into non-game settings and domains. It is the process of adding game-oriented functionality to processes, programs and platforms that would not traditionally include and facilitate them. In recent years, gamification and the technologies that fuel its implementations have become a leading platform and a reference approach for achieving socialization and innovative communication with various target groups. Bridging the gap between producers of goods and services and consumers, gamification has proved to be a valuable tool for marketing, finance, business communication, training, IT and – of course – leisure and entertainment. Exploring how games connect with skillset acquisition and training, reveals that they play a significant and constructive role in introducing contexts that empower the development of key competences and traits proven very useful for success in real life, learning aptitude, and professional growth.

Gamification works by offering the targeted audiences with missions, directives and feedback through mechanics and activities added to online services and platforms. It almost always aims to build, maintain and manage a virtual community of users that share common goals and objectives. A compelling gamification experience can capture the participant’s attention, invoke motivating emotions and project goal-oriented thinking patterns. Such experiences include tasks, actions and scenarios that demonstrate the best route towards completing a short-term objective or a long-term goal. As participants interact with a gamified program or service, they steadily receive gratification and feedback. While the first is commonly lead by a reward policy or a ranking system, the later reports performance stats and often provides the appropriate information for self-assessment. Both target a sustainable feeling of achievement that incentivizes the user to do better and reach harder goals.

Gamification is the strategy for influencing and motivating the behavior of people, which also includes students and trainees. In recent years, it has emerged to be a framework of concepts and mechanisms that can be applied across a wide spectrum of educational contexts and environments, where individuals require motivation to follow through specific learning tasks and activities. It can decisively transfer the challenge attitude and retention pattern of gamers inside a classroom and its students. When challenge is triggered, learning goals become clearer and every learning step is much easier to follow. Reward policies and incentivization strategies are both very important and go hand-by-hand with gamification. If the student cannot visualize an attractive end or goal to his or her commitment, there is no point in providing gamified mechanisms for the learning process. Focus is commonly established after the reward value has been accepted. Reward should not be one thing that fuels the whole learning experience, but rather a series of benefits that can appeal to the eyes of the students. That is why, what used to be a simple goal or prize, is now structured in a strategy and policy. Instructors and the learning engines of gamified platforms do not simply give out experience points (points students can earn as they play) as rewards. There are rules and patterns that should be followed and adopted to properly gamify a lesson, a project, or an exercise. As an example, rewards can be delivered using leader boards, badges, credits and ranking schemes that encourage students to have fun while competing in performing a learning activity.