Gamification an Emerging Technology

Gamification is a persuasive technology that attempts to influence behaviours by activating individual motives via game-design elements, and it is an example of creating a problem-solving environment with camaraderie where tasks can be explored and enhanced in a goal-oriented manner.

In the last few years, Gamification has been the most popular development regarding the improvement of beneficial behaviours in diverse kind of organisations, because it deploys games design characteristic such as score points, clear narrative, leader boards, feedback, achievements, among others.

This disruptive technology has emerged and changed the ways of doing things, as we have been used to for a long time, either due to an improvement in personal processes or organisational processes regarding specific needs or due to the context in which that we are living.

Likewise, Gamification is a persuasive technology that attempts to influence human behaviours by activating individual motives via game-design elements, being an example of creating a problem-solving environment with camaraderie where tasks can be explored and enhanced in a goal-oriented manner or for specific organisational objectives.

Benefits

For example, Gamification in the recruitment process can be used for various benefits including saving time and increasing chances of hiring the right people for the job. However, an incorrect implementation could wreak havoc on candidates, by generating highly competitive environments, if the rules of the game are not clearly clarified.

Some benefits of using Gamification are:

• Mimicking real-life challenges with increasing levels of difficulty.
• Using game-based elements in corporate presentations, and simulations learning for improving job performance.
• Promoting social interaction and competition.
• Improving an existing leadership training program.
• Simulating reality in uncertain environments.
• Including elements for learning for people with learning disabilities.
• Allowing trainees to collect badges for each completed course.
• Enabling learning in a forgiving environment, which allows for risk-free mistakes.
• Taking advantage of intrinsic motivation.

Risks

While the benefits of gamification are undisputed, there are undoubtedly some risks and negative elements of Gamification that require examination. It would be remiss of us not to highlight these elements, not only to bring attention to them but to provide effective solutions to them to ensure the safety and efficacy of this technology implementation.

The dangers of gamification can be broadly split into 5 categories: personal, social, ethical, legal and business or economic.

• Personal: an impact of the technology that affects a person and their behaviour, professional performance, or health.
• Social: an impact of the technology that affects how a person interacts with other people.
• Ethical: an impact of the technology that, while it may not be illegal, would be viewed as improper by an average member of society.
• Legal: an impact of the technology which directly or indirectly breaches laws in the countries it is operating in.
• Business/Economic: an impact of the technology that affects the economic condition or overall success of a business or person.

With the implementation of gamified systems, there is a risk that employees might become fixated on the game, to the detriment of the other tasks they are required to do. There is also a risk that employees might become so obsessed with “winning” that they neglect their health and care.

Employees at Disneyland Resort Hotels in Anaheim, Calif were reportedly skipping meals and bathrooms breaks in order to get ahead following the implementation of a traffic light performance measurement game.

There is also a risk that older workers, disabled workers or those from culturally diverse backgrounds might struggle or not engage with the game, whether they understand the concept of the content or not, and fall behind, through no fault of their own.

Also the obvious issue of the digital divide, where people who do not have access to technology or might not have grown up around technology, will inevitably be at a disadvantage in using a gamified system.

Forcing people into games can also backfire, as it removes the “fun” element from it and turns it into a chore. On a societal level, gaming can have negative impacts on the relationships we have with other people, be they family, friends, or co-workers.

Toxic competitiveness through gamification can harm employee inter-relationships and cause wider issues with workplace culture. You can also inadvertently cause issues related to what was discussed above about certain employees not understanding the game and creating a “us and them” scenario

Ethics

There is a valid question surrounding the ethics of gamification, as there is a manipulative and subversive element to it. By framing a task as a game, you are tricking someone into fulfilling that task for a reward and denying the reward if they fail the task.

As mentioned, there is also an element of technical knowledge required, and while in the 21st century most people do have these skills, it is untrue to claim that everyone does. Therefore, is it ethical to implement a mandatory system that some sectors of the workforce will not be able to use?

Ultimately the issue of ethics comes down to the question of “what is the point of implementing the system?”. Is it to improve employee wellbeing and knowledge, or is it to improve the bottom line of the business, or both?

Legislative and legal issues

Exist several scenarios in which a gamified system might fall foul of the law, thus several things must be considered, for instance, whether the company you will be implementing the system for is multinational.

In that scenario, the laws of each individual country that the business is operating in must be taken into consideration. Particular attention should be given to those countries with conservative religious governments, as they may have particularly strong laws related to gaming and gambling.

As with many “emerging technologies” a significant issue is that much of the law has not caught up with the technology yet, and so falling foul of legislation is quite common.

Economic/Business impacts

There are some inherent risks to the success of a business or person that come with implementing a gamification system.

Firstly, implementing a gamified system and expecting immediate upticks in employee productivity is delusional. Changing employee behaviour, which is fundamentally the key point of gamification, does not happen overnight. And while employees are getting used to the new way of doing things, it is possible, and even likely, that employee performance will drop before it peaks.

Furthermore, careful consideration needs to be made that the game is targeting and encouraging the correct behaviour, otherwise implementing it will result in negative outcomes.

Different workplaces will also attract different personalities within their employee base, and therefore will be suited to different types of games. A car-based game might be suitable for people in the automotive industry but might not be appealing for those working in banking. It is important to tailor the game to the individual business.

Conclusion

Gamification undoubtedly is a game-changer when it comes to employment and the workplace, however, there are some significant risks and hurdles that need to be addressed in order for this technology to be effective.

Emerging and Disruptive technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Data Analytics, Augmented Reality, among others, will make Gamification even more versatile and exciting for its participants in diverse fields from Education to Health services, providing great social benefits for broad communities around the globe.

Including vulnerable communities like groups of people that experience barriers in diverse aspects such as social, economic, technology access between others, or for limitations due to illness or disability.

Eventually, Gamification will be effective in most, but not all workplaces, and properly identifying which workplaces, and the unique makeup of a particular workplace, is key to ensuring that a gamified system will enhance a workplace.

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