Manuscript received October 10, 2023; revised November 7, 2023; accepted December 15, 2023; published April 7, 2024
Abstract—Gamified learning has been gaining popularity in recent years due to its potential to change learners’ behaviour and increase their motivation and engagement in an educational setting. However, the implementation of gamification in tertiary education may be challenging because of the distinct students’ attributes, preferences and needs. Although previous studies suggest that the personalization of gamification can be achieved by adhering to learners’ player typology based on personality, performance, learning styles and more. The authors of this study proposed a peculiar player trait based on game theory as it closely resembles rational decision-making by students in the learning process. The study was carried out for 8 weeks by separating 60 undergraduate students from the School of Educational Studies into a control group and an experiment group; the participants were then exposed to a gamified platform (Classcraft) and non-gamified learning environment (Google Classroom). The interviews were conducted pre, during and post-intervention. The qualitative data were then recorded, transcribed and analyzed. At the end of the study, the findings showed the segmentation of player traits based on the minimax principle (stagnation, omission, evasion, seclusion, corporation, collaboration, neglection, commonization, uniformation and tranquilization) and maximin principle (ambition, indagation, emulation, interaction, connection, exclusion, exploration, characterization, fashion and contemplation), a thematic framework was also constructed.
Keywords—ame theory, player traits, gamification, education
Cite: Darren Lim, Mageswaran Sanmugam, Wan Ahmad Jaafar Wan Yahaya, and Musabah Said Al Breiki, "Redesigning Malaysian University Students’ Player Traits from the Perspective of Game Theory: A Qualitative Study," International Journal of Information and Education Technology vol. 14, no. 4, pp. 552-558, 2024.