Influence of gamification affordance on young citizens’ motivation and learning performance toward digital civic education

Abstract

The popularity of digital civic education has gained the attention of educators, policymakers, and public administrators worldwide across the globe. Research scholars have also been focused on understanding how young citizens’ motivation and learning outcomes can be stimulated. Based on gamification affordances and self-determination theory, this study examines how three gamification affordances (i.e. reward affordance, competition affordance, and self-expression affordance) affect young citizens’ intrinsic motivation and learning performance in digital civic education. In addition, the study examines the moderating effect of the modularity of gamified learning activities on the relationship between intrinsic motivation and learning performance. Data for this research were collected from 454 young citizens of a digital civic education platform through an online survey. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the proposed research model. The empirical results indicate that the three gamification affordances exert different degrees of influence on the satisfaction of young citizens’ intrinsic psychological needs, which in turn, facilitates their learning performance. Further, the results indicate that the modularity of gamified learning activities impedes the impact of psychological need satisfaction on learning performance. This study is important in that it helps educators and politicians understand the needs of young citizens through gamified digital civic education modes.

Keywords:

• Digital civic education
• gamification affordance
• self-determination theory
• modularity of gamified learning activities
• learning performance

Acknowledgments

We want to thank for the research sponsorship received by the National Social Science Fund of China, Major Project (17ZDA030), the National Social Science Fund of China, Western Region Project (23XMZ022).

Author contributions

RunZe Liu: Investigation, data analysis, hypotheses development, writing. Lin Zhang: Theoretical framework, methodology, data analysis, writing. ZhiWei Cao: Data analysis, writing. JiaNing Mi: Theoretical framework, writing, validation.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

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2. Ibid.; Malone, “Civic Education.”

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6. Barthel, “President for a Day.”

7. Ibid.; Hassan, “Governments Should Play Games.”

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9. Hassan and Hamari, “Gameful Civic Engagement.”

10. See the link of https://www.xuexi.cn/.

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23. Barata et al., “Studying Student Differentiation.”; Hassan and Hamari, “Gameful Civic Engagement.”; Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”; Van Roy and Zaman, “Need-Supporting Gamification.”

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31. Ibid.

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40. Hassan and Hamari, “Gameful Civic Engagement.”

41. Ibid.

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50. Hamari et al., “Does Gamification Work?”; Koivisto & Hamari, “The Rise of Motivational Information Systems.”

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55. Aparicio et al., “Gamification.”; Behl & Dutta, “Engaging Donors on Crowdfunding Platform.”; Van Roy and Zaman, “Need-Supporting Gamification.”

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61. Santhanam et al., “Research Note.”; Ibid.

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63. Hamari et al., “Does Gamification Work?”

64. Feng et al., “Gamification Artifacts and Crowdsourcing Participation.”

65. Huang and Zhou, “Social Gamification Affordances.”

66. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

67. Zhang et al., “Gamification and Online Impulse Buying.”

68. Barata et al., “Studying Student Differentiation.”

69. Aparicio et al., “Gamification.”

70. Van Roy and Zaman, “Need-Supporting Gamification.”

71. Behl & Dutta, “Engaging Donors on Crowdfunding Platform.”

72. Hassan, “Governments Should Play Games.”

73. Hassan and Hamari, “Gameful Civic Engagement.”

74. Deci & Ryan, “Conceptualizations of Intrinsic.”; Deci et al., “A Meta-Analytic Review of Experiments.”

75. Alam and Campbell, “Temporal Motivations of Volunteers.”; Greguras and Diefendorff, “Different Fits Satisfy Different Needs.”; Leroy et al., “Authentic Leadership, Authentic Followership.”; Van den Broeck et al., “Capturing Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness at Work.”; Xu and Li, “An Empirical Study of the Motivations.”

76. Deci et al., “A Meta-Analytic Review of Experiments.”

77. Ibid.

78. Barata et al., “Studying Student Differentiation.”; Behl & Dutta, “Engaging Donors on Crowdfunding Platform.”; Hassan, “Governments Should Play Games.”; Tobon et al., “Gamification and Online Consumer Decisions.”; Zhang et al., “The Impacts of Point Rewarding.”

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81. Zhang et al., “Gamification and Online Impulse Buying.”

82. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”

83. Tobon et al., “Gamification and Online Consumer Decisions.”; Zhang et al., “Gamification and Online Impulse Buying.”

84. Deci & Ryan, “Conceptualizations of Intrinsic.”

85. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”; Zhang et al., “Gamification and Online Impulse Buying.”

86. Jung et al. “Enhancing the Motivational Affordance of Information Systems.”

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88. Liu et al., “Toward Meaningful Engagement.”; Santhanam et al., “Research Note.”

89. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”

90. Jung et al. “Enhancing the Motivational Affordance of Information Systems.”; Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

91. Sailer et al., “How Gamification Motivates.”

92. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

93. Zainuddin, “Students’ Learning Performance.”

94. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

95. Dale, “Gamification.”

96. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”

97. See the link of https://www.coe.int/en/web/digital-citizenship-education

98. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”

99. Ibid.

100. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

101. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”

102. Deci & Ryan, “Conceptualizations of Intrinsic.”

103. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

104. Deci & Ryan, “Conceptualizations of Intrinsic.”

105. Van den Broeck et al., “Capturing Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness at Work.”

106. Deci & Ryan, “Conceptualizations of Intrinsic.”

107. Ibid.; Van den Broeck et al., “Capturing Autonomy, Competence, and Relatedness at Work.”

108. Ibid.

109. Leroy et al., “Authentic Leadership, Authentic Followership.”

110. Greguras and Diefendorff, “Different Fits Satisfy Different Needs.”

111. Deci & Ryan, “Conceptualizations of Intrinsic.”; Ibid.

112. Suh and Li, “How Gamification Increases Learning Performance?”

113. Sejpal, “Modular Method of Teaching.”; Guido, “Evaluation of a Modular Teaching.”; Saltz et al., “Helping Data Science.”

114. Liu et al., “Toward Meaningful Engagement.”

115. Suh and Li, “How Gamification Increases Learning Performance?”

116. Liu and Zhou, “Exploration of Reverse-Based.”

117. Saltz et al., “Helping Data Science.”

118. Dineen & Collins, “Killing the Goose.”; Dejene & Chen, “The Practice of Modularized Curriculum.”

119. Suh and Li, “How Gamification Increases Learning Performance?”

120. Ibid.

121. Deci et al., “A Meta-Analytic Review of Experiments.”

122. Suh and Li, “How Gamification Increases Learning Performance?”

123. Kankanhalli et al. “Gamification.”

124. Sun et al., “Critical Functionalities of a Successful e-Learning System.”

125. Domínguez et al., “Gamifying Learning Experiences.”

126. Zhang et al., “How to Improve User Engagement.”

127. Bovermann et al., “Better Together?”

128. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

129. Edwards, “Multi-Dimensional Constructs.”

130. Bollen and Lennox, “Conventional Wisdom on Measurement.”; Ibid.

131. Keil et al., “A Cross-Cultural Study.”; Liang et al., “Assimilation of Enterprise Systems.”

132. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”

133. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

134. Suh and Li, “How Gamification Increases Learning Performance?”

135. See the link of https://cyzx.xmjmedu.com/jsfc/57011.htm.

136. Zhang et al., “Gamification and Online Impulse Buying.”

137. The first attention check was a one-itme question (“There are five options from 1 to 5, please select 2”). The respondents who did select the specified option were regarded as valid data. The second attention check was measured by the following question: “Have you ever noticed that you obtain points after completing the relevant learning behaviors?” Respondents who marked “yes” were regarded as valid samples, while those who marked “no” were categorized as invalid.

138. Oppenheimer et al., “Instructional Manipulation Checks.”; James et al., “Using Organismic Integration Theory.”

139. Red & Blue Works, “From Civic Education.”

140. Gefen et al., “Structural Equation Modeling.”

141. Chin et al., “A Partial Least Squares Latent.”; Hair et al., “A Primer on Partial Least Squares.’’

142. Chin et al., “A Partial Least Squares Latent.”

143. Benitez et al., “How to Perform and Report an Impactful Analysis.”

144. Ibid.; Henseler et al., “A New Criterion for Assessing Discriminant.”

145. Chin et al., “A Partial Least Squares Latent.”

146. Ibid.; Sarstedt et al., “How to Specify, Estimate.”

147. Benitez et al., “How to Perform and Report an Impactful Analysis.”

148. Ibid.

149. Ibid.

150. Ibid.

151. Podsakoff et al., “Common Method Biases in Behavioral Research.”

152. Rönkkö & Ylitalo, “PLS Marker Variable Approach.”; Zhang et al., “Gamification and Online Impulse Buying.”

153. Lertwannawit and Mandhachitara, “Interpersonal Effects on Fashion.”

154. Zhang et al., “How to Improve User Engagement.”

155. Hair et al., “A Primer on Partial Least Squares.”

156. Ibid.

157. Benitez et al., “How to Perform and Report an Impactful Analysis.”

158. Ibid.

159. Ibid.

160. Ibid.; Preacher & Hayes, “Asymptotic and Resampling Strategies.”

161. Preacher & Hayes, “Asymptotic and Resampling Strategies.”; Hair et al., “A Primer on Partial Least Squares.”

162. Zhang et al., “Gamification and Online Impulse Buying.”

163. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”; Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”

164. Suh et al., “Gamification in the Workplace.”

165. Ibid.; Suh and Li, “How Gamification Increases Learning Performance?”

166. Xi and Hamari, “Does Gamification Satisfy Needs?”; Sailer et al., “How Gamification Motivates.”

167. Hassan, “Governments Should Play Games.”; Hassan and Hamari, “Gameful Civic Engagement.”

168. Suh and Li, “How Gamification Increases Learning Performance?”

169. Deci et al., “A Meta-Analytic Review of Experiments.”

170. Vansteenkiste et al., “The Development of the Five.”

171. Hassan, “Governments Should Play Games.”; Hassan and Hamari, “Gameful Civic Engagement.”

172. Aparicio et al., “Gamification.”; Santhanam et al., “Research Note.”; Zainuddin, “Students’ Learning Performance.”

173. Aparicio et al., “Gamification.”; Barata et al., “Studying Student Differentiation.”; Behl & Dutta, “Engaging Donors on Crowdfunding Platform.”; Van Roy and Zaman, “Need-Supporting Gamification.”

174. Koivisto & Hamari, “The Rise of Motivational Information Systems.”

175. Khan et al., “From Elements to Structures.”

176. Koivisto & Hamari, “The Rise of Motivational Information Systems.”

177. Dineen & Collins, “Killing the Goose.”; Dejene & Chen, “The Practice of Modularized Curriculum.”; Saltz et al., “Helping Data Science.”

178. Deci & Ryan, “Conceptualizations of Intrinsic.”; Malhotra et al., “Organisational Justice, Organisational Identification and Job Involvement.”

179. Zhang et al., “How to Improve User Engagement.”

Additional information

Notes on contributors

RunZe Liu

RunZe Liu is a Ph.D. Candidate at the School of Management, Harbin Institute of Technology in China. His research project tried to evaluate the influence of digital technology on Egovernance.He is also interested in research related to mobile social platforms and technology adoption. Email: [email protected]

Lin Zhang

Lin Zhang is a Associate Professor at the School of Management, Northwestern Polytechnical University in China, and a Visiting Scholar at Management Information Systems at EDHEC Business School, Lille, and Paris, France. His research focuses on gamification in the electronic and mobile business, trust in sharing economy, and digital technology adoption. His work has been published in many academic journals, including Decision Support Systems, Information & Management, International Journal of Information Management, Industrial Management & Data Systems, Electronic Commerce Research and Applications, etc. Email: [email protected]

ZhiWei Cao

ZhiWei Cao is a Master’s Candidate of the School of Management, Harbin Institute of Technology in China. His research project fucuses on e-government, smart city, and public policy. Email: [email protected]

JiaNing Mi

JiaNing Mi is a Full Professor of Public Management at the School of Management at Harbin Institute of Technology, China. He received his Ph.D. in Technology Economics and Management. He is the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Public Management. His research primarily focuses on digital government, e-government, smart city, and public policy. His works have been published in academic journals, including the Journal of Transport Geography, Policy & Society, International Journal of Transport Economics, Chinese Public Administration, E-Government, etc. Email: [email protected]