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    "title" : "Using Gamification in Federal Projects |Digital.gov",
    "description": "Using Gamification in Federal Projects",
    "home_page_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/","feed_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2012/11/30/using-gamification-in-federal-projects/index.json","item" : [
    {"title" :"Using Gamification in Federal Projects","summary" : "Gamification is the practice of using game technology or design principles for something that is not inherently game-like. Some examples include: bronze, silver, and gold badges for reading a set number of books, progress bars in online surveys, leader boards for top grades on an exam, or rewards for attending in-person events. As gamification projects are","date" : "2012-11-30T02:35:26-04:00","date_modified" : "2025-01-27T19:42:55-05:00","authors" : {"mike-kruger" : "Mike Kruger"},"topics" : {
        
            "content-strategy" : "Content strategy",
            "mobile" : "Mobile",
            "product-and-project-management" : "Product and project management",
            "social-media" : "Social media"
            },"branch" : "bc-archive-content-3",
      "filename" :"2012-11-30-using-gamification-in-federal-projects.md",
      
      "filepath" :"news/2012/11/2012-11-30-using-gamification-in-federal-projects.md",
      "filepathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/blob/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2012/11/2012-11-30-using-gamification-in-federal-projects.md",
      "editpathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/edit/bc-archive-content-3/content/news/2012/11/2012-11-30-using-gamification-in-federal-projects.md","slug" : "using-gamification-in-federal-projects","url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/bc-archive-content-3/2012/11/30/using-gamification-in-federal-projects/","content" :"\u003cdiv class=\"image\"\u003e\n  \u003cimg\n    src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/_legacy-img/2012/11/250-x-250-Vector-contest-banners-in-flat-style-winners-venimo-iStock-Thinkstock-471796081.jpg\"\n    alt=\"Vector contest banners in flat style winners\"/\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003cp\u003eGamification is the practice of using game technology or design principles for something that is not inherently game-like. Some examples include: bronze, silver, and gold badges for reading a set number of books, progress bars in online surveys, leader boards for top grades on an exam, or rewards for attending in-person events. As gamification projects are becoming increasing common in the government, here are some basic principles and policies to help program managers and project directors make informed decisions around this popular technique.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGamification should not be confused with serious games—games that are designed to teach, motivate, practice or train for interactive simulations. Instead gamification uses the psychology and philosophy of video games employed by video game designers to motivate behavior. Gamification also tends to involve leveraging social media. This can also be used as a feedback loop. For example, allowing users to perform an activity that trigger a bonus for both encourages users to motivate each other to contribute.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"why-it8217s-important\"\u003eWhy It’s Important\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConsider using gamification when you are trying to motivate behavior, reach a general public audience, build community, or reach non-traditional learners. It should be used only where appropriate. For example, if you are trying to increase business participation in a webinar it would be appropriate. However, some formal regulatory processes would be a poor fit.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"how-to-implement\"\u003eHow to Implement\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"design-principles-hahahugoshortcode1642s1hbhb\"\u003eDesign Principles \u003cdiv class=\"image\"\u003e\n  \u003cimg\n    src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/_legacy-img/2012/11/250-x-248-Social-Connector-Vector-gamification-concept-achievement-icons-venimo-iStock-Thinkstock-467474919.jpg\"\n    alt=\"Social Connector icon from gamification concept achievement icons\"/\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSome common design principles include: leader boards, achievements, and virtual assets. Consider adding social aspects into the “game” to increase its longevity and user engagement.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAvoid kill-and-drill:\u003c/strong\u003e Some game-based projects rely on gameplay or activities that are interspersed with learning. For example, the game might allow students to shoot monsters only to have the game pause and force the student to solve a math problem in order to continue. While this is game-like, it’s not taking advantage of the psychology of games. Generally speaking, this is not very effective. Students will not play it for “fun”—they have products that compete for their time and have no reason to choose this product. In addition, during the shooting portion they are not learning math. Consider alternative approaches to merging game aspects and the learning activity. For example, as a student completes math problems, a progress meter fills. When it is filled to 100 percent, the student gets an award that is displayed on his or her Facebook page.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSocial:\u003c/strong\u003e Gamification often leverages a social aspect such as comparing scores to encourage competition and motivate action towards a desired goal. If the gamification campaign design is solitary (single player), consider incorporating a social media campaign around it that leverages augmented reality. For example, participants could be encouraged to visit a physical location, such as an endangered estuary (for learning), and receive a code that gives them a reward on a social media site.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCurrency and financial issues:\u003c/strong\u003e Many platforms and systems are increasingly tied to financial transactions, such as in-app-purchases or marketplaces. Project champions should be aware that making use of many of these frameworks might involve financial issues for the end users. For example, a developer might want to enable in-app-purchases inside a system. There is no law against this, but it may require working with the agency’s General Counsel to ensure legal obligations are met.\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"contracting\"\u003eContracting\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProcurement can be a great challenge. It is critical that the right mix of skills be present for the project to be successful. The project lead or champion should be someone who is comfortable with game design.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"device-neutral\"\u003eDevice Neutral\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile it is desirable to build for all devices, this is often unrealistic. If resources are constrained, the project champion should use metrics to determine what the expected audience is using and then build to that system.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"privacy\"\u003ePrivacy\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIntegration of applications with social media or requiring registration (useful for leader boards or other competitive approaches) may have privacy impacts. Be sure to consult with your agency’s Privacy Officer and/or General Counsel when developing the project plan.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 id=\"evaluation\"\u003eEvaluation\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe evaluation of gamification projects can be very difficult. However, the project champion should design a robust evaluation that follows metrics (not qualitative user feedback) to make informed decisions about how to improve the process and experience.\u003c/p\u003e\n"}
  ]
}