Introduction
There are many definitions of what gamification is. In short gamification is taking something that is not a game, like corporate training, and adding game design and mechanics in the hopes of increasing engagement. This means that gamification takes aspects from both the mechanical and physiological parts of game-design and applies them to non-game things. It should be noted however, that this is not creating a game with the goal of training, that is called a serious game and is not the same as gamification. Gamification is taking training and adding game-like elements to it in hopes to make it more fun, while a serious game is an actual video game design with the intention of training and learning. The goal of gamification in training is to engage with learners to inspire, motivate and encourage them to interact with the provided training. There are many parts of game design that you can add into your trainings to make them more engaging; quizzes, points, levels, leaderboards, and badges to name a few. One of the key pieces to make gamified training successful in a corporate setting is leadership involvement and enthusiasm. Having leaders that are visibly engaging with the training will help boost employee participations and lessen the feeling of being judged by others or fear of being reprimanded by mangers. ("Does Gamified Training Get Results?", 2023).
Banishing Boredom
As a trainer I have seen firsthand the struggle to get buy-in from employees to not only take but actively participate in required training. Many employees see the majority of corporate training to be dull, boring and time that they could be spending on other work activities. Employing gamification techniques can go a long way to reframing peoples’ thoughts of training just something boring to get though. In order to ignite curiosity instruction designers and trainers need to understand that “Boredom is not necessarily the opposite of curiosity; boredom results from being in an environment that is filled with uniform, unchanging stimuli…” (Keller & Deimann, 2018, p.80). I have personally been training a class and witnessed the shift in training engagement once the group’s eyes start glazing over. Without a pretty big shift in tactic, it is hard to get people to reengage. Employing gamification aspics into training can help keep people engaged for longer and help to break up what can turn into a little monotony in long training sessions. Learners are more willing to complete repetitive tasks, as well as experience failure and still make additional repeated attempts in gamified environments (Larson,2022). One aspect of gamification that can be added to both e-learning and instructor led courses to break up the training and help keep off boredom is quizzes or polls. A question about something that was previously taught can help gage where people are, ensure they are grasping the information and allow them to shift focus momentarily to reengage them. Using non-training related polls may also be a great way to liven up training and encourage people to participate, doing a poll of people’s favorite ice cream flavor for example.
Belief in Mastering the Task
“A central concept related to building confidence in mastering learning tasks is that of control.” (Keller & Deimann, 2018, p.81), learners are more likely to be motivated when they feel like the outcomes or success, they are achieving is due to their skill level and not just luck. Having a marathon quiz in training to try to assess knowledge will leave learners hoping they can guess as many correct questions as they need to pass in order to get back to work. As instructional designers we need to find other ways to provide a sense of control to the learner of what they are learning or how quickly they are progressing. You can incorporate progress bars and levels into training to allow learners to know how far they have come and how much more has to be done. Showing how far they have progressed through the training is a great way to boost confidence and motivation to keep going. Adding levels with added difficulty can also help bolster the belief that they can master the task by starting off easier and gradually building upon knowledge they already know; you have to crawl before you can walk. Levels would also allow users at different knowledge levels to start where they are comfortable or challenge themselves by trying a higher level. Simulations are also a great way to encourage this self-belief. Allowing learners to step though what they are learning themselves instead of answering endless questions combines real life experiences with the knowledge they are learning.
Anticipate & Experience Satisfying Outcomes
The anticipation and experience of satisfying outcomes is a large part of the success of games in general. It keeps the person coming back for more even if things might be a little hard. If the reward is good enough someone will try over and over to defeat the final boss or complete a difficult quest. This same anticipation and experience of satisfaction can be incorporated into corporate training to make something people are enthusiastic about completing. When trying to implement these satisfying outcomes into a training it is important to keep in mind that extrinsic rewards may actually cause a decrease in motivation, so it is important to choose implementation methods that provide feedback when a person is successful to help combat that. Two of the elements of gamification that you can incorporate into training are badges and leaderboards. Badges can elicit the feeling of recognition of skill or knowledge and if made shareable or posted by the company, they can inform others of the level of expertise. (Larson,2019) Leaderboards allow a group as a whole see where they stack up against the rest and allows them to better see that they may need to be more active to increase their score. You may also consider how frequently you reset the leaderboard to give employees that were not able to be as active in training during a set time frame the ability to still advance on the leaderboard. Badges and leaderboards can also provide “…feedback that reinforces a student for successfully completing an optimally challenging task…”(Keller & Deimann, 2018, p.81).
References
Ketkin, I. (2022, June 28). How to gamify your training. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haei30lDwHw&ab_channel=TheL%26DAcademy
Larson, K. (2019). Serious games and gamification in the Corporate Training Environment: A Literature Review. TechTrends, 64(2), 319–328. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-019-00446-7
Does Gamified Training Get Results? (2023, March/April). Harvard Business Review.
Koumparaki, E. (2023, February 23). Gamification in corporate training: 5 examples to get you inspired. TalentLMS Blog. https://www.talentlms.com/blog/how-use-gamification-training/
Pandey, A. (2021, May 12). 5 killer gamification examples to enhance the impact of your corporate training (updated in 2020). eLearning Industry. https://elearningindustry.com/gamification-in-the-workplace-reshaping-corporate-training-5-killer-examples
Keller, J. M. & Deimann, M. (2018). Motivation, volition, and performance. In R. A. Reiser,& J. V. Dempsey (EDS), Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology. (4th ed., pp.78–86). Person Education Inc.
In todays fast paced world traditional training methods sometimes fall short in engaging the learners and even fostering a culture of continuous learning because lets be honest if it isn't interesting you probably wont dive deeper. That is why I love how the blog post dive into the importance and the intricates of gamification in the training world.
Gamification not only makes learning more enjoyable but also significantly enhances motivation, retention and knowledge transfer.
The benefits of gamification in training include:
Increased engagement and motivation
Enhances learning experience
Improved retention and knowledge transfer
Encourages social connections
Alignment with company culture
Gamification is revolutionizing corporate training by making it more engaging, interactive, and effective. By incorporating game-like elements into training programs,…
Motivation to learn is promoted when learners believe they can succeed in mastering the learning task
Corporate training is a delicate issue, because it concerns the worker’s motivation to improve his skills to increase individual productivity. Companies have adopted gamification to improve the completion performance of their training programs (Iacono, et al., 2020). In the corporate industry, it is mandatory to complete a certain number of training courses for specific subject areas. For instance, completing active shooter training is something I am particularly interested in because in an event that happens, I want to be prepared and equipped with the necessary knowledge. Learners are more likely to be motivated when they feel like the outcomes or success, they are achieving…
Hello! Thank you for sharing this! I really appreciated the video that explains how to gamify a learning experience. Your post really highlights how gamification can enhance learning motivation.
Concept 1: Banishing Boredom
“Boredom is not necessarily the opposite of curiosity; boredom results from being in an environment that is filled with uniform, unchanging stimuli…” (Dempsey & Reiser, 2018.) This can be especially present in corporate training where the learning is mandatory, as you had mentioned. However, according to Kristi Larson, “The influence of games on the cognitive, emotional and social domains of players allows for an increase in motivation in the learning process” (Larson, 2020.) By incorporating features that allow learners to explore, compete, socialize, or achieve,…
Gamification of Learning is a concept that has gained significant attention in recent years. With the increasing use of technology in education, incorporating gamification principles in instructional design and technology has shown great promise in enhancing learner engagement and motivation. In this analytical essay, I will explore the unique learner engagement concepts and principles of gamification, and how they play a role in learning at the Master level.
One of the key concepts of gamification of learning is the use of game elements to promote engagement and motivation. These game elements can include points, badges, leaderboards, levels, and rewards, which are designed to create a sense of achievement and progress for the learners. These game elements can be used to…
In the blog The Use of Gamification in Corporate Training is explores how to turn dull training into interactive fun that engages employees. An important note that is brought out is that gamification is not creating a game, rather adding game like elements to the training (jllatham5, 2023). Let’s look at motivational elements that gamification incorporates.
Igniting Curiosity
In the study Gamification in Education: The Motivation-Exploration-Implementation Theory, it states how gamification in the educational world augmented motivation, limited attention spans, decreased classroom attendance, and academic performance. It provided learning fun for those who struggle with traditional learning environments (Cabello et al., 2021). This addresses how boredom can affect the motivation of a learner. If you can ignite epistemic curiosity…