Development of a Gamified Cooperative Teamwork Environment Using an Event-Based Approach

Abstract

This work aims to develop a cooperative gamified testbed for teamwork assessment using an event-based approach. It proposes a systematic approach to develop event-based gamified teaming testbeds where cooperative game features trigger observable teaming behaviors Cooperative game features have been used in previous work to understand social play and develop serious games where cooperation, interdependence, and asymmetry are applied. Players in cooperative games engage in teamwork processes such as communication, coordination, planning, and performance monitoring. The event-based approach to training is a methodology used to develop teamwork simulations using scripted trigger events that explicitly connect with the targeted teamwork competencies. A process was developed to identify cooperative features that serve as behavioral triggers and to establish a connection between teamwork competencies, gamified features, and targeted behavioral responses. Furthermore, the paper presents a game prototype design developed using the event-based approach and the identified cooperative game features. This approach provides a systematic way to develop and assess team research testbeds. With these testbeds, objective teamwork assessment will be possible through tracking the exercised behaviors. This paper aims to present this process as a framework for serious cooperative games development and to establish cooperative games as testbeds for objective teamwork assessment.