Factors to Consider for Tailored Gamification

International audienceGamification is widely used to foster user motivation. Recent studies show that users can be more or less receptive to different game elements, based on their personality or player profile. Consequently, recent work on tailored gamification tries to identify links between user types and motivating game elements. However findings are very heterogeneous due to different contexts, different typologies to characterize users, and different implementations of game elements. Our work seeks to obtain more generalizable findings in order to identify the main factors that will support design choices when tailoring gamification to users' profiles and provide designers with concrete recommendations for designing tailored gamification systems. For this purpose, we ran a crowdsourced study with 300 participants to identify the motivational impact of game elements. Our study differs from previous work in three ways: first, it is independent from a specific user activity and domain; second, it considers three user typologies; and third, it clearly distinguishes motivational strategies and their implementation using multiple different game elements. Our results reveal that (1) different implementations of a same motivational strategy have different impacts on motivation, (2) dominant user type is not sufficient to differentiate users according to their preferences for game elements, (3) Hexad is the most appropriate user typology for tailored gamification and (4) the motiva-tional impact of certain game elements varies with the user activity or the domain of gamified systems

Using Gamification to Motivate Students with Dyslexia

The concept of gamification is receiving increasing attention, particularly for its potential to motivate students. However, to date the majority of studies in the context of education have predominantly focused on University students. This paper explores how gamification could potentially benefit a specific student population, children with dyslexia who are transitioning from primary to secondary school. Two teachers from specialist dyslexia teaching centres used classDojo, a gamification platform, during their teaching sessions for one term. We detail how the teachers appropriated the platform in different ways and how the students discussed classDojo in terms of motivation. These findings have subsequently informed a set of provisional implications for gamification distilling opportunities for future pedagogical uses, gamification design for special education and methodological approaches to how gamification is studied

Exercise as Labour: Quantified Self and the Transformation of Exercise into Labour

The recent increase in the use of digital self-tracking devices has given rise to a range of relations to the self often discussed as quantified self (QS). In popular and academic discourse, this development has been discussed variously as a form of narcissistic self-involvement, an advanced expression of panoptical self-surveillance and a potential new dawn for e-health. This article proposes a previously un-theorised consequence of this large-scale observation and analysis of human behaviour; that exercise activity is in the process of being reconfigured as labour. QS will be briefly introduced, and reflected on, subsequently considering some of its key aspects in relation to how these have so far been interpreted and analysed in academic literature. Secondly, the analysis of scholars of “digital labour” and “immaterial labour” will be considered, which will be discussed in relation to what its analysis of the transformations of work in contemporary advanced capitalism can offer to an interpretation of the promotion and management of the self-tracking of exercise activities. Building on this analysis, it will be proposed that a thermodynamic model of the exploitation of potential energy underlies the interest that corporations have shown in self-tracking and that “gamification” and the promotion of an entrepreneurial selfhood is the ideological frame that informs the strategy through which labour value is extracted without payment. Finally, the potential theoretical and political consequences of these insights will be considered

Incentive Mechanisms for Participatory Sensing: Survey and Research Challenges

Participatory sensing is a powerful paradigm which takes advantage of smartphones to collect and analyze data beyond the scale of what was previously possible. Given that participatory sensing systems rely completely on the users' willingness to submit up-to-date and accurate information, it is paramount to effectively incentivize users' active and reliable participation. In this paper, we survey existing literature on incentive mechanisms for participatory sensing systems. In particular, we present a taxonomy of existing incentive mechanisms for participatory sensing systems, which are subsequently discussed in depth by comparing and contrasting different approaches. Finally, we discuss an agenda of open research challenges in incentivizing users in participatory sensing.Comment: Updated version, 4/25/201

BPM Adoption at Bilfinger

Big size corporate companies that opt for Business ProcessManagement (BPM) adoption invest a lot in BPM initiatives with theprimary focus on the identification and standardization of best practicesin the different phases of the BPM lifecycle. The business processes de-signed are usually seen as the standard way of executing the processesand tend not be adapted to specific customers' need or changing condi-tions. Furthermore, the acceptance of a paradigm shift by the end usersis an added challenge. This case introduces a success story on BPMadoption in complex environments where different organizational unitswith different needs are involved. The projects executed in different unitsrespond to specific customers’ requirements, which affects the set of pro-cesses to be designed and executed within them. We developed a novelapproach inspired by the Cynefin framework and used it to define processarchitectures and the respective business process models for a subset ofthe units. To ensure the applicability and acceptance of the new paradigmwe followed a number of well-known methodologies and practices (e.g.SCRUM and gamification). As a result, we managed to move from thetraditional function orientation to BPM orientation taking into consid-eration the flexibility needs, and we received very positive feedback fromour end users

Interactive tools for reproducible science

Reproducibility should be a cornerstone of science. It plays an essential role in research validation and reuse. In recent years, the scientific community and the general public became increasingly aware of the reproducibility crisis, i.e. the wide-spread inability of researchers to reproduce published work, including their own. The reproducibility crisis has been identified in most branches of data-driven science. The effort required to document, clean, preserve, and share experimental resources has been described as one of the core contributors to this irreproducibility challenge. Documentation, preservation, and sharing are key reproducible research practices that are of little perceived value for scientists, as they fall outside the traditional academic reputation economy that is focused on novelty-driven scientific contributions. Scientific research is increasingly focused on the creation, observation, processing, and analysis of large data volumes. On one hand, this transition towards computational and data-intensive science poses new challenges for research reproducibility and reuse. On the other hand, increased availability and advances in computation and web technologies offer new opportunities to address the reproducibility crisis. A prominent example is the World Wide Web (WWW), which was developed in response to researchers’ needs to quickly share research data and findings with the scientific community. The WWW was invented at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). CERN is a key laboratory in High Energy Physics (HEP), one of the most data-intensive scientific domains. This thesis reports on research connected in the context of CAP, a Research Data Management (RDM) service tailored to CERN's major experiments. We use this scientific environment to study the role and requirements of interactive tools in facilitating reproducible research. In this thesis, we build a wider understanding of researchers' interactions with tools that support research documentation, preservation, and sharing. From an HCI perspective the following aspects are fundamental: (1) Characterize and map requirements and practices around research preservation and reuse. (2) Understand the wider role and impact of RDM tools in scientific workflows. (3) Design tools and interactions that promote, motivate, and acknowledge reproducible research practices. Research reported in this thesis represents the first systematic application of HCI methods in the study and design of interactive tools for reproducible science. We have built an empirical understanding of reproducible research practices and the role of supportive tools through research in HEP and across a variety of scientific fields. We designed prototypes and implemented services that aim to create rewarding and motivating interactions. We conducted mixed-method evaluations to assess the UX of the designs, in particular related to usefulness, suitability, and persuasiveness. We report on four empirical studies in which 42 researchers and data managers participated. In the first interview study, we asked HEP data analysts about RDM practices and invited them to explore and discuss CAP. Our findings show that tailored preservation services allow for introducing and promoting meaningful rewards and incentives that benefit contributors in their research work. Here, we introduce the term secondary usage forms of RDM tools. While not part of the core mission of the tools, secondary usage forms motivate contributions through meaningful rewards. We extended this research through a cross-domain interview study with data analysts and data stewards from a diverse set of scientific fields. Based on the findings of this cross-domain study, we contribute a Stage-Based Model of Personal RDM Commitment Evolution that explains how and why scientists commit to open and reproducible science. To address the motivation challenge, we explored if and how gamification can motivate contributions and promote reproducible research practices. To this end, we designed two prototypes of a gamified preservation service that was inspired by CAP. Each gamification prototype makes use of different underlying mechanisms. HEP researchers found both implementations valuable, enjoyable, suitable, and persuasive. The gamification layer improves visibility of scientists and research work and facilitates content navigation and discovery. Based on these findings, we implemented six tailored science badges in CAP in our second gamification study. The badges promote and reward high-quality documentation and special uses of preserved research. Findings from our evaluation with HEP researchers show that tailored science badges enable novel forms of research repository navigation and content discovery that benefit users and contributors. We discuss how the use of tailored science badges as an incentivizing element paves new ways for interaction with research repositories. Finally, we describe the role of HCI in supporting reproducible research practices. We stress that tailored RDM tools can improve content navigation and discovery, which is key in the design of secondary usage forms. Moreover, we argue that incentivizing elements like gamification may not only motivate contributions, but further promote secondary uses and enable new forms of interaction with preserved research. Based on our empirical research, we describe the roles of both HCI scholars and practitioners in building interactive tools for reproducible science. Finally, we outline our vision to transform computational and data-driven research preservation through ubiquitous preservation strategies that integrate into research workflows and make use of automated knowledge recording. In conclusion, this thesis advocates the unique role of HCI in supporting, motivating, and transforming reproducible research practices through the design of tools that enable effective RDM. We present practices around research preservation and reuse in HEP and beyond. Our research paves new ways for interaction with RDM tools that support and motivate reproducible science.Reproduzierbarkeit sollte ein wissenschaftlicher Grundpfeiler sein, da sie einen essenziellen Bestandteil in der Validierung und Nachnutzung von Forschungsarbeiten darstellt. Verfügbarkeit und Vollständigkeit von Forschungsmaterialien sind wichtige Voraussetzungen für die Interaktion mit experimentellen Arbeiten. Diese Voraussetzungen sind jedoch oft nicht gegeben. Zuletzt zeigten sich die Wissenschaftsgemeinde und die Öffentlichkeit besorgt über die Reproduzierbarkeitskrise in der empirischen Forschung. Diese Krise bezieht sich auf die Feststellung, dass Forscher oftmals nicht in der Lage sind, veröffentlichte Forschungsergebnisse zu validieren oder nachzunutzen. Tatsächlich wurde die Reproduzierbarkeitskrise in den meisten Wissenschaftsfeldern beschrieben. Eine der Hauptursachen liegt in dem Aufwand, der benötigt wird, um Forschungsmaterialien zu dokumentieren, vorzubereiten und zu teilen. Wissenschaftler empfinden diese Forschungspraktiken oftmals als unattraktiv, da sie außerhalb der traditionellen wissenschaftlichen Belohnungsstruktur liegen. Diese ist zumeist ausgelegt auf das Veröffentlichen neuer Forschungsergebnisse. Wissenschaftliche Forschung basiert zunehmend auf der Verarbeitung und Analyse großer Datensätze. Dieser Übergang zur rechnergestützten und daten-intensiven Forschung stellt neue Herausforderungen an Reproduzierbarkeit und Forschungsnachnutzung. Die weite Verbreitung des Internets bietet jedoch ebenso neue Möglichkeiten, Reproduzierbarkeit in der Forschung zu ermöglichen. Die Entwicklung des World Wide Web (WWW) stellt hierfür ein sehr gutes Beispiel dar. Das WWW wurde in der Europäischen Organisation für Kernforschung (CERN) entwickelt, um Forschern den weltweiten Austausch von Daten zu ermöglichen. CERN ist eine der wichtigsten Großforschungseinrichtungen in der Teilchenphysik, welche zu den daten-intensivsten Forschungsbereichen gehört. In dieser Arbeit berichten wir über unsere Forschung, die sich auf CERN Analysis Preservation (CAP) fokussiert. CAP ist ein Forschungsdatenmanagement-Service (FDM-Service), zugeschnitten auf die größten Experimente von CERN. In dieser Arbeit entwickeln und kommunizieren wir ein erweitertes Verständnis der Interaktion von Forschern mit FDM-Infrastruktur. Aus Sicht der Mensch-Computer-Interaktion (MCI) sind folgende Aspekte fundamental: (1) Das Bestimmen von Voraussetzungen und Praktiken rund um FDM und Nachnutzung. (2) Das Entwickeln von Verständnis für die Rolle und Auswirkungen von FDM-Systemen in der wissenschaftlichen Arbeit. (3) Das Entwerfen von Systemen, die Praktiken unterstützen, motivieren und anerkennen, welche die Reproduzierbarkeit von Forschung vorantreiben. Die Forschung, die wir in dieser Arbeit beschreiben, stellt die erste systematische Anwendung von MCI-Methoden in der Entwicklung von FDM-Systemen für Forschungsreproduzierbarkeit dar. Wir entwickeln ein empirisches Verständnis von Forschungspraktiken und der Rolle von unterstützenden Systemen durch überwiegend qualitative Forschung in Teilchenphysik und darüber hinaus. Des Weiteren entwerfen und implementieren wir Prototypen und Systeme mit dem Ziel, Wissenschaftler für FDM zu motivieren und zu belohnen. Wir verfolgten einen Mixed-Method-Ansatz in der Evaluierung der Nutzererfahrung bezüglich unserer Prototypen und Implementierungen. Wir berichten von vier empirischen Studien, in denen insgesamt 42 Forscher und Forschungsdaten-Manager teilgenommen haben. In unserer ersten Interview-Studie haben wir Teilchenphysiker über FDM-Praktiken befragt und sie eingeladen, CAP zu nutzen und über den Service zu diskutieren. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die mensch-zentrierte Studie von speziell angepassten FDM-Systemen eine besondere Blickweise auf das Entwerfen von Anreizen und bedeutungsvollen Belohnungen ermöglicht. Wir führen den Begriff secondary usage forms (Zweitnutzungsformen) in Bezug auf FDM-Infrastruktur ein. Hierbei handelt es sich um Nutzungsformen, die Forschern sinnvolle Anreize bieten, ihre Arbeiten zu dokumentieren und zu teilen. Basierend auf unseren Ergebnissen in der Teilchenphysik haben wir unseren Forschungsansatz daraufhin auf Wissenschaftler und Forschungsdatenmanager aus einer Vielzahl verschiedener und diverser Wissenschaftsfelder erweitert. In Bezug auf die Ergebnisse dieser Studie beschreiben wir ein zustandsbasiertes Modell über die Entwicklung individueller Selbstverpflichtung zu FDM. Wir erwarten, dass dieses Modell designorientierte Denk- und Methodenansätze in der künftigen Implementierung und Evaluation von FDM-Infrastruktur beeinflussen wird. Des Weiteren haben wir einen Forschungsansatz zu Spielifizierung (Gamification) verfolgt, in dem wir untersucht haben, ob und wie Spielelemente FDM-Praktiken motivieren können. Zunächst haben wir zwei Prototypen eines spielifizierten FDM-Tools entwickelt, welche sich an CAP orientieren. Obwohl die beiden Prototypen auf sehr unterschiedlichen Entwurfskonzepten beruhen, fanden Teilchenphysiker beide angemessen und motivierend. Die Studienteilnehmer diskutierten insbesondere verbesserte Sichtbarkeit individueller Forscher und wissenschaftlicher Arbeiten. Basierend auf den Ergebnissen dieser ersten Studie zu Spielifizierung in FDM haben wir im nächsten Schritt sechs speziell zugeschnittene Forschungs-Abzeichen (tailored science badges) in CAP implementiert. Die Abzeichen bewerben das ausführliche Dokumentieren sowie besondere Nutzen der auf dem Service zugänglichen Forschungsarbeiten. Die Ergebnisse unserer Evaluierung mit Teilchenphysikern zeigen, dass die speziell zugeschnittenen Forschungs-Abzeichen neue und effektivere Möglichkeiten bieten, Forschungsmaterialien systematisch zu durchsuchen und zu entdecken. Hierdurch profitieren sowohl Nutzer als auch Forschungsdaten-Beisteuernde. Basierend auf den Ergebnissen diskutieren wir, wie die Forschungs-Abzeichen neue Formen der Interaktion mit großen Forschungsrepositorien ermöglichen. Zum Schluss heben wir die besondere Rolle von MCI in der Entwicklung unterstützender FDM-Infrastruktur hervor. Wir betonen, dass speziell an Forschungspraktiken angepasste Systeme neue Ansätze in der Interaktion mit wissenschaftlichen Arbeiten ermöglichen. Wir beschreiben zwei Modelle und unsere Erwartung, wie MCI die Entwicklung künftiger FDM-Systeme nachhaltig beeinflussen kann. In diesem Zusammenhang präsentieren wir auch unsere Vision zu ubiquitären Strategien, die zum Ziel hat, Forschungsprozesse und Wissen systematisch festzuhalten