Prior Gaming Experience Research Articles

Student behavioral engagement during mathematics educational video game instruction with 11–14 year olds

Serious digital for education are presumed to be engaging, but little is known about whether engagement is ubiquitous, whether it persists over time, whether it is found for all students across the full range of prior gaming experience, and whether it is actually associated with game-based learning outcomes. To address these gaps, student behavioral engagement (i.e., sustained attention, persistence was examined during mathematics instruction using a mathematics serious digital game for the iPad?, in a study of 97 11-14 year olds (i.e., 6-8th grade students in the United States system). Consistent with the study hypotheses, observations revealed that most students were highly engaged, but engagement was lower for students who were observed later in the semester and who had the most prior gaming experience. In addition, observed engagement was associated with better performance on an assessment of the skills being taught in the game. In contrast, none of these effects was evident for self-reported student engagement. Time course, prior gaming experience, and method of assessing engagement are important modulators of student differential response to game-based instruction and should be considered when evaluating the influence of serious digital games on learning outcomes.

Motivational effects and age differences of gamification in product advertising

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to study motivational effects and age differences of gamification in product advertising. Game-elements can easily be embedded within product advertisements, but little is known about the success factors of this technology. We investigated which motivational incentives of game designs influence the purchase intentions of consumers. The theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1991) was expected to explain purchase intentions for non-gamified sports products, whereas the modified technology acceptance model (Herziget al., 2012) was expected to predict purchase intentions of gamified sports products.Design/methodology/approach– Participants were 101 consumers who performed sports on a regular basis. Age and prior experience with digital games were assumed to influence the effectiveness of gamification.Findings– Purchase intentions of conventional products were predicted by attitudes, subjective norm and perceived control, whereas purchase intentions of gamified products were predicted by attitudes and the perceived usefulness. Enjoyment and flow were significant mediators between motivational incentives and purchase intentions. Consumers with prior gaming experience had higher purchase intentions for gamified products.Practical implications– Gamify products for younger target groups with gaming experience; use intrinsic and extrinsic motivational incentives; focus on enjoyment, flow and the perceived usefulness.Social implications– Game-elements in sports advertisements might also be suitable for public health campaigns. They may motivate people be more physically active and lead a healthier lifestyle.Originality/value– This study specifies predictors for purchase intentions of gamified products and emphasizes the importance of flow and enjoyment as mediators. Age differences indicate that young consumers had higher intentions to purchase the gamified product, judged it as more useful and perceived more flow and enjoyment than the older age group.

Self-regulation and gender within a game-based learning environment.

In this study, we examined how self-regulated learning (SRL) and gender influences performance in an educational game for 8th-grade students (N = 130). Crystal Island–Outbreak is an immersive, inquiry-based, narrative-centered learning environment featuring a microbiology science mystery aligned with 8th-grade science curriculum. SRL variables predicted successful in-game performance even after accounting for prior knowledge and perceived gaming skill. Content learning gains were found across both genders, and girls performed at similar levels as boys in the game despite incoming disadvantages for perceived skill and prior gaming experience. Boys were more effective than girls in using a cognitive tool that was critical for solving the Crystal Island–Outbreak mystery; however, these differences disappeared when prior gaming experience was taken into account. Overconfidence on monitoring judgments for boys but not girls was predictive of in-game performance. Findings related to motivational variables such as self-efficacy, situational interest, and goal orientation were mixed with regard to their consistency across genders.

Learning basic surgical skills through simulator training

Computer-based surgical training simulators are instrumental in skill-based training and performance measurement. However, to date, the educational employment of these tools lacks empirically founded insights and effective practical guidelines. This study examined surgical residents during computer-based simulator training of basic laparoscopic surgical skills. The quantitative analysis of residents’ performance averages from training onset to completion produced mixed results, revealing skill improvements as well as decreases, depending on the parameter. The results obtained from the simulator parameters and questionnaires showed that residents with either prior laparoscopic experience or gaming experience significantly outperformed their colleagues. Based on feedback and video-recorded performance analysis, the study concluded that autonomous training with the simulator is not sufficient for developing a minimum standard of performance. Residents need an adequate level of content-based feedback and supervisor support during training. We advise a more detailed and pedagogically informative measurement and feedback system, including specialist-instructor guidance, be developed.

Virtual Navigation Performance: The Relationship to Field of View and Prior Video Gaming Experience

Two experiments examined whether learning a virtual environment was influenced by field of view and how it related to prior video gaming experience. In the first experiment, participants (42 men, 39 women; M age = 19.5 yr., SD = 1.8) performed worse on a spatial orientation task displayed with a narrow field of view in comparison to medium and wide field-of-view displays. Counter to initial hypotheses, wide field-of-view displays did not improve performance over medium displays, and this was replicated in a second experiment (30 men, 30 women; M age = 20.4 yr., SD = 1.9) presenting a more complex learning environment. Self-reported video gaming experience correlated with several spatial tasks: virtual environment pointing and tests of Judgment of Line Angle and Position, mental rotation, and Useful Field of View (with correlations between .31 and .45). When prior video gaming experience was included as a covariate, sex differences in spatial tasks disappeared.

How Prior Gaming Experience Affects the Learning Effectiveness, Fun and Engagement in a Statistics Study Game

How Prior Gaming Experience Affects the Learning Effectiveness, Fun and Engagement in a Statistics Study Game

Teaching with Virtual Worlds: Factors to Consider for Instructional Use of Second Life

Substantial evidence now supports pedagogical applications of virtual worlds; however, most research supporting virtual worlds for education has been conducted using researcher-developed Multi-User Virtual Environments (MUVE). Second Life (SL) is a MUVE that has been adopted by a large number of academic institutions; however, little research has systematically investigated the potential of using SL for higher education. A 2–year pilot study was conducted that included seven SL activities and a mixed-methods evaluation of the SL's affordances, challenges, and limitations. Three SL integration factors emerged, each with sub-factors: pedagogical (relevance, complexity of required SL skills, use of SL affordances); contextual (student prior gaming experience, activity duration, frequency of events); and logistical (SL usability, training, technical support, computer issues). A framework for creating SL instructional activities is presented using the factors.

Nintendo Wii video-gaming ability predicts laparoscopic skill

Studies using conventional consoles have suggested a possible link between video-gaming and laparoscopic skill. The authors hypothesized that the Nintendo Wii, with its motion-sensing interface, would provide a better model for laparoscopic tasks. This study investigated the relationship between Nintendo Wii skill, prior gaming experience, and laparoscopic skill. In this study, 20 participants who had minimal experience with either laparoscopic surgery or Nintendo Wii performed three tasks on a Webcam-based laparoscopic simulator and were assessed on three games on the Wii. The participants completed a questionnaire assessing prior gaming experience. The score for each of the three Wii games correlated positively with the laparoscopic score (r = 0.78, 0.63, 0.77; P < 0.001), as did the combined Wii score (r = 0.82; P < 0.001). The participants in the top tertile of Wii performance scored 60.3% higher on the laparoscopic tasks than those in the bottom tertile (P < 0.01). Partial correlation analysis with control for the effect of prior gaming experience showed a significant positive correlation between the Wii score and the laparoscopic score (r = 0.713; P < 0.001). Prior gaming experience also correlated positively with the laparoscopic score (r = 0.578; P < 0.01), but no significant difference in the laparoscopic score was observed when the participants in the top tertile of experience were compared with those in the bottom tertile (P = 0.26). The study findings suggest a skill overlap between the Nintendo Wii and basic laparoscopic tasks. Surgical candidates with advanced Nintendo Wii ability may possess higher baseline laparoscopic ability.

Development and Evaluation of the Game-Based Performance Assessment Battery (GamePAB) and Game Experience Measure (GEM)

The Army is increasingly using game-based simulations (GBS) for the training of Soldiers. The use of GBS addresses the need to quickly adapt training content and deliver relevant training to Soldiers. One major drawback to the use of any simulation is the need to insure the users have the minimal skills necessary to utilize the simulation to perform the training tasks. The best approach to insuring effective use of a GBS would be to employ a standardized measure of game skills. GamePAB was developed and is being evaluated for measuring video game skills and GEM was developed and is being evaluated for measuring prior gaming experience and knowledge. Data were collected from Soldiers during exercises in which a GBS was evaluated. Results suggest that the new metrics are reliable but not related. These results also suggest that there are continuing issues involved in using subjective measures of skill or objective measures of knowledge in predicting GBS performance.