Effect of the Gamified Second Language Vocabulary Learning: A Meta-Analysis Study

Abstract

In recent years, gamification in language learning has been a hot topic of study because of its presumed potential to improve language acquisition by providing a more natural, socially interactive, contextually relevant, and interesting learning setting. Many scholars all around the globe have been conducting trials on the pros and cons of using games to aid in the memory of foreign language vocabulary for some time now. Current studies on the best ways to learn new words find that gamified techniques, with their roots in motivational theories like goal setting and self-determination, are the most effective. As such, this meta-analysis aims to systematically synthesize data from quasi-experimental research conducted between 2012 and 2022 to determine whether or not gamified vocabulary acquisition is associated with the improved recall of L2 words. Fifteen main studies that met the eligibility criteria found that gamifying the process of learning L2 words had a significant favorable impact. Regarding remembering foreign-language words, the active gamified mode proved to be more effective than the passive one. Given the methodological weaknesses of the original studies and the comparably small sample sizes of several categories of moderators, the above findings should be seen as suggestive rather than conclusive.