A Pilot Study of <i>Pokémon Go</i> and Players' Physical Activity

Liu, Wei; Ligmann-Zielińska, Arika

doi:10.1089/g4h.2017.0036

Cited by 26 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Recent evidence has shown individualistic and community-wide gamified interventions to be effective at increasing physical activity in the short term ( Shameli et al, 2017 ; Looyestyn et al, 2017 ; McCartney, 2016 ; Liu and Ligmann-Zielinska, 2017 ). However, the extent to which these approaches lead to long-term changes in physical activity is often questioned and was yet to be explored.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The apparent success of Pokémon Go demonstrated the mass-appeal of community-wide gamification approaches which operate in an outdoor environment and preliminary evidence suggests participants became more active as a result of playing the game, at least in the short-term ( McCartney, 2016 ; Liu and Ligmann-Zielinska, 2017 ). Furthermore, scholars have begun to untangle the varied motivations for taking part.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Maintenance of behaviour change following a community-wide gamification based physical activity intervention

Harris

2019

Preventive Medicine Reports

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Gamification refers to the use of game mechanics (e.g. competition, point scoring, progress visualisation and task setting) to engage and motivate people to achieve an end goal. Public health programs that incorporate gamification-based approaches which aim to improve the public's health have grown in popularity, however most commonplace are individualistic, smartphone-based applications and few studies have been conducted on community-wide interventions. Furthermore, the few studies which have been conducted have relied on small sample sizes with short-term follow-up. In view of this gap in current understanding, this study explored the impact of a community-wide gamified intervention, called ‘Beat the Street’ (in Reading UK) on levels of physical activity at 1 and 2-years post-intervention (between 2014 and 2016). Data were available for N = 1567 participants at one-year post-intervention and N = 723 participants at 2-years post-intervention. A Pretest-Posttest analysis revealed a 11% and 13% decrease in levels of inactivity at 1 and 2-years post-intervention respectively. Furthermore, participants who were inactive at baseline reported undertaking 3.4 and 3.8 days of activity at 1 and 2-years post-intervention, respectively. These findings provide promising preliminary evidence that gamification may be effective for decreasing physical inactivity and game-design mechanisms which may support behaviour change are discussed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maintenance of behaviour change following a community-wide gamification based physical activity intervention

Harris

2019

Preventive Medicine Reports

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“…Controlled trials remain unexplored partly due to the newness of such approaches in this area of public health. [15,16,30,31,32,33] There is need to understand the potential impact of this type of intervention in cultures outside of the United Kingdom. It is plausible that weather and existing patterns of physical activity and active travel may impact upon intervention uptake and effectiveness.…”

Section: Future Directionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Motivations and barriers to engagement with a technology-enabled community wide physical activity intervention

Harris

Crone

2020

PLoS ONE

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Previous physical activity interventions have failed to create population change and an alternative approach is needed to support a World Health Organization target of a 15% reduction in global levels of inactivity by 2030. There is growing evidence that gamification-based interventions can reach substantial portions of the community. However, to date, these studies have been predominantly quantitative and as such there is a paucity of research in the area on motivations and barriers to engagement with these programs. Four focus groups conducted with N = 26 players who participated in a gamification-based intervention 'Beat the Street' revealed several varied motives to engagement, including collective reward; social influence; game reinvention; exploration; accessibility and awareness. However, several barriers specific to the Beat the Street intervention and outdoor gamification interventions more generally were also identified. This study provides novel insight into the motives which engage individuals into physical activity interventions and the design principles which need to be considered when implementing interventions of this nature.

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“…A number of Pokémon GO studies have been conducted in college-aged students and young adults [32,36,37,39,40,46,47]. Fewer studies have examined Pokémon GO gameplay in pediatric populations [26,48,49] or within the context of family health.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pokémon GO Within the Context of Family Health: Retrospective Study

Militello¹,

Hanna²,

Nigg³

2018

JMIR Pediatr Parent

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Background Pokémon GO illuminated the potential for mobile phone gaming apps to engage users and promote health. However, much work is needed to fully understand the mechanisms through which digitally supported behavior change interventions operate, particularly for children and families. Objective The aims of this study were (1) to explore the Pokémon GO user experience from a family perspective and (2) to investigate Pokémon GO within the context of family health. Methods Between January and February 2017, congruent with one of the largest anticipated Pokémon GO updates Gen 2, participants were recruited from parks, word of mouth, and social media to complete a Web-based survey. Participants were surveyed about family characteristics, interest, and experiences playing Pokémon GO and healthy lifestyle beliefs. Using a revised Godin Leisure-Time Exercise Questionnaire, a retrospective pre-post design assessed changes in parent physical activity (PA) before and after playing Pokémon GO. Results Self-reported data from 160 parents and 31 children were included in the final analyses (representing 129 parents and 31 parent-child dyads). Gameplay most often occurred between sons aged 10 years or younger and mothers. “Spending time together” was the most cited reason for gameplay by both parents (122/160, 76.3%) and children (24/31, 77%), followed by “it helped me go outdoors” for parents (113/160, 70.1%) and “I am a Pokémon fan” by children (21/31, 68%). Interestingly, open-ended responses indicated that gameplay could trigger both positive and negative emotional parent response. The most cited reason for app disengagement was boredom; conversely, the most cited reason for app re-engagement was in-app events. For parents, there were significant increases in minutes spent in mild (mean 23.36 [SD 66.02]; t 97 =3.50, P <.001) and moderate (mean 21.76 [SD 53.04]; t 130 =4.70, P <.001) PA per week after playing Pokémon GO. However, child perceptions of parental influence on PA most significantly associated with parents who reported weekly strenuous PA both before (r s =.514, P =.003) and after (r s =.536, P =.003) Pokémon GO uptake. Conclusions Pokémon GO transcended traditional understanding of digital health and uniquely reached across generations to engage users. Findings from this study highlight that, for a period of time, Pokémon GO fostered social and physical well-being for children and families through a multifaceted approach.

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A Pilot Study of Pokémon Go and Players' Physical Activity

Abstract: Pokémon Go as a location-based mobile game is a promising tool for promoting PA, but more research is needed to prolong its positive impact.

Cited by 26 publications

References 14 publications

Maintenance of behaviour change following a community-wide gamification based physical activity intervention

Maintenance of behaviour change following a community-wide gamification based physical activity intervention

Motivations and barriers to engagement with a technology-enabled community wide physical activity intervention

Pokémon GO Within the Context of Family Health: Retrospective Study

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