Assessing Ethoshunt as a Gamification-Based Mobile App in Ethics Education: Pilot Mixed-Methods Study

Abstract

Background Gamification has remarkable potential in the learning space. The process of creating a gamified system and its influence on human behavior reflect the interaction between educators and machines. Objective The purpose of this pilot study was to present Ethoshunt as a gamification-based mobile app that can be used in teaching and learning ethics. Methods This study involved a mixed-methods research design. The researchers surveyed 39 undergraduate students who were introduced to Ethoshunt in order to examine the relationships between mobile app usability and positive emotions, ethical competency, and user experience. Affinity diagramming was used as a tool to organize the opinions and experiences of participants using featured gamification elements. Results Game dynamics and game mechanics explained the functionality of Ethoshunt. In addition, the learning flow through Ethoshunt was discussed. Overall, the findings were positive, and mobile app usability had the strongest relationship with positive emotions (r=0.744, P<.001), followed by ethical competency (r=0.686, P<.001) and user experience (r=0.614, P<.001). Conclusions Positive emotions could be perceived as an important dimension in the development and usability of Ethoshunt. The researchers suggest that the gamification-based mobile app advocated in this study may provide ideas for ethics educators who wish to develop a technology-mediated learning environment.

Conceptual Ambiguity Surrounding Gamification and Serious Games in Health Care: Literature Review and Development of Game-Based Intervention Reporting Guidelines (GAMING)

“…Chronic disease management and rehabilitation is covered by 38.3% (79/206) of studies, including studies on dementia [ 45 , 46 ], diabetes [ 47 , 48 ], or depression [ 49 , 50 ]. Furthermore, 23.3% (48/206) of studies focused on supporting health professionals and mostly dealt with education on various topics, such as emergency care [ 51 ], specific surgical procedures [ 52 , 53 ], or teaching ethics in medicine [ 54 ].…”

“…Cheng et al [ 81 ] argue that the latter definition is more useful in an mHealth context, as it focuses on the goal of gamification instead of its method. Zakaria et al [ 54 ] provided various conceptualizations of gamification throughout the article without contrasting them.…”

Kahoot! Como herramienta de gamificación en evaluación formativa aplicada en la educación odontológica

“…En la educación, el docente se enfrenta a nuevos desafíos como la necesidad de implementar metodologías innovadoras, la gamificación consiste en el uso de juegos para crear entornos de aprendizaje activos y de apoyo que motiven a los estudiantes (Zakaria et al, 2020).…”

“…Existen diferentes herramientas metodológicas que sirven para reorientar la educación, transformando y habilitando los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje presencial a la modalidad en línea. Una de las direcciones de la innovación educativa que se está convirtiendo en una tendencia mundial, es la gamificación que consiste en el uso de juegos para crear entornos de aprendizaje activos y de apoyo que motiven a los estudiantes (Zakaria et al, 2020).…”

“…Los elementos que integran el juego involucran efectivamente a los estudiantes, mientras que el principal rol del docente es incluir a los estudiantes en este proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje (Zakaria et al, 2020). El presente proyecto de estrategia de práctica docente eficaz, esta dirigido a los estudiantes del Programa Educativo de la Licenciatura de Cirujano Dentista de la unidad de aprendizaje de Microbiología, a partir de la implementación de la herramienta Kahoot!…”