A1 Vertaisarvioitu alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä lehdessä
The strength and direction of the difficulty adaptation affect situational interest in game-based learning
Tekijät: Koskinen Antti, McMullen Jake, Hannula-Sormunen Minna, Ninaus Manuel, Kiili Kristian
Kustantaja: PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
Julkaisuvuosi: 2023
Journal: Computers and Education
Tietokannassa oleva lehden nimi: COMPUTERS & EDUCATION
Lehden akronyymi: COMPUT EDUC
Artikkelin numero: 104694
Vuosikerta: 194
Sivujen määrä: 17
ISSN: 0360-1315
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2022.104694
Verkko-osoite: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2022.104694
Rinnakkaistallenteen osoite: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/178800220
Research has shown that difficulty adaptation is a promising instructional technique in digital game-based learning. Nevertheless, although the strength and direction of difficulty adaptation can affect motivational outcomes, these effects remain insufficiently examined in game-based learning. This within-subject study examined how the strength and direction of difficulty adap-tation affected motivational outcomes in digital game-based math learning. The participants were 167 Finnish fifth-graders who studied fractions with the Number Trace game. The game included 144 tasks, half were adapted according to participants' playing performance. Situational interest and perceived difficulty were measured several times with in-game self-report items during the intervention. The manipulation check confirmed that difficulty adaptation was implemented successfully as task correctness and perceived difficulty changed according to the strength and direction of adaptation. Regarding motivational outcomes, two-way repeated-measures ANOVAs showed that the difficulty adaptation increased situational interest, but only when the task dif-ficulty was substantially adapted downwards. Contrary to our expectations, a substantial upwards adaptation of the task difficulty significantly decreased situational interest. Minor adaptation of difficulty did not affect situational interest. The current study contributes to the field of adaptive digital learning environments by highlighting the effects of the strength and direction of difficulty adaptation on motivational outcomes. Theoretical, practical, and methodological implications of the findings are discussed.
Ladattava julkaisu This is an electronic reprint of the original article. |  |
