Gamification towards and alongside equity, diversity and inclusion: Looking back to move forward

Abstract

Given the urgent need for environments that enable everyone in fulfilling their fullest potential, many new media innovations have focused on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) actions. Gamification is one of these innovations, becoming a promising avenue to engage people towards effective social change. Yet, the intersection between EDI and gamification is incipient and fragmented, preventing a comprehensive understanding of current findings and future advancements in this field. This literature review systematically investigates the meanings, methods and effects of gamification in EDI actions (i.e. gamification towards EDI), and the design of equitable, diverse and inclusive gamification (i.e. gamification alongside EDI). Results elucidate how gamification improves performance, enriches experiences and fosters change, while analysing its design through gender, age and disability lenses. Future work calls for broader and deeper gamified EDI interventions informed by social sciences, diverse people-oriented design and empirical demonstration of sustainable social change.