Motivation for exergame play inventory: Construct validity and relationship to game play

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to develop the Motivation for Exergame Play Inventory (MEPI) as a publicly available and validated measure of psychological and motivational constructs specific to increase the duration of exergame play. This study is an ancillary analysis of data from a randomized trial of sixty-one adolescents assigned to one of four exergames to play in their home for 4 weeks. Parents provided baseline demographic information. Adolescents completed the MEPI at the end of week 1 and completed game logs to record exergame play over the four weeks. Factor analysis with varimax rotation was used to determine the number of distinct composite factors within the MEPI. Cronbach’s alpha assessed internal consistency of each resulting factor. Separate regression models were used to examine the association of each factor with total game play over 4 weeks. Twenty-two of 28 items were retained in the MEPI to measure five distinct constructs of motivation: sensory immersion/flow, user control, goals of the game, performance feedback, and challenge/difficulty. Sensory immersion/flow and user control were each significantly associated with total game play. Evidence of construct validity for the MEPI was demonstrated. The MEPI appears to be a promising tool to assess players’ motivation for exergaming, an important contributor to sustained physically active game play.