Gamification to prevent climate change: a review of games and apps for sustainability

Benjamin D Douglas; Markus Brauer

doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.04.008

Gamification to prevent climate change: a review of games and apps for sustainability

Curr Opin Psychol. 2021 Dec:42:89-94. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.04.008. Epub 2021 May 1.

Authors

Benjamin D Douglas¹, Markus Brauer²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1202 W. Johnson St., Madison WI 53706, USA. Electronic address: bdouglas3@wisc.edu.
² Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1202 W. Johnson St., Madison WI 53706, USA. Electronic address: markus.brauer@wisc.edu.

PMID: 34052619
DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.04.008

Abstract

Gamification, the application of game design principles to a nongaming context, has been used to promote pro-environmental behaviors. Such principles have been implemented in board games, team competitions, electronic games, smartphone apps, and in apps that researchers developed primarily to collect data. We review the games and apps that have been evaluated in empirical research in the last 5 years and provide a list of apps and games that have yet to be tested. Gamification has been used for sustainability education, energy reduction, transportation, air quality, waste management, and water conservation. Although we do not know yet why certain games and apps are more effective than others, gamification appears to be a promising avenue for preventing climate change.

Keywords: Apps; Climate change; Games; Gamification; Sustainability.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Climate Change
Gamification
Humans
Mobile Applications*
Video Games*