Governmentality, Playbor, and Peak Performance

Abstract

Gamification—the use of video game elements in non-gaming environments—is an effective and lucrative method of compelling individuals to engage with behaviors normally found aversive or uninteresting. Gamified applications are found in myriad areas, from education and social justice to health and wellness. A preponderance of evidence suggests that gamified health applications can have a positive effect on mental and physical health, but these benefits are often not balanced against the unanticipated or unknown consequences to individuals that come with coercing or “governing” players towards activities that might not be for the players' benefit. The chapter describes and explains gamification, discusses various health and wellness gamification programs, and then highlights existing and speculates on potential exploitative interactions stemming from uncritical engagement with health and wellness gamification. This critique is offered through Foucault's lens of “governmentality.”