Structural Modeling and Analysis of Barriers Encountered in Gamification Applications in Health

Abstract

Applications (apps) offer outstanding opportunities for healthcare services to serve individuals in areas that do not involve technology that improve healthcare outcomes, and that strengthen community health. These opportunities are becoming more common, especially with the increasing use of mobile devices in many segments of society. On the other hand, there are many obstacles that directly or indirectly affect the process of implementing gamification applications. In this study, the authors use Interpretive structural modeling (ISM) and MICMAC aiming to reveal the relations of obstacles encountered, and also to find the root cause of barriers in gamification engagement through applications used in healthcare. Findings showed that the lack of functionality of the apps, having the highest driving power and lowest dependency, was determined as the root barrier whilst other barriers are also divided into levels.