# A Long-Term Investigation on the Effects of (Personalized) Gamification on Course Participation in a Gym

**Authors:** Maximilian Altmeyer, Marc Schubhan, Antonio Krüger, Pascal Lessel  
**arXiv:** [2107.12597](https://arxiv.org/abs/2107.12597)  
**Date:** 2021-07-27  
**Summary page:** https://www.summarizepaper.com/en/arxiv-id/2107.12597v1/

## Key points

- Gamification is used to motivate individuals to engage in physical activity
- Most gamification systems follow a one-size-fits-all approach, despite interpersonal differences in perception of gamification elements
- Short-term studies investigating the effects of gamification do not account for novelty effects
- Personalized gamification elements integrated into a fitness course booking system were investigated for their impact on user participation over a long period
- The study involved 52 participants who paid for each course they booked, limiting autonomy in decision-making regarding physical activity
- Personalized gamification elements were tailored to specific Hexad user types to investigate whether suitable elements led to increased course participation
- The study lasted for 275 days and showed that personalized gamification significantly increased participation in fitness courses
- Users who received suitable gamification elements according to their Hexad user type showed a significant increase in participation compared to others
- Personalized gamification approaches are important when motivating individuals towards physical activity and can lead to sustained engagement over an extended period.

## Summary

Gamification has been widely used to motivate individuals to engage in physical activity. However, most gamification systems follow a one-size-fits-all approach, despite research indicating that interpersonal differences exist in the perception of gamification elements. Additionally, most studies investigating the effects of gamification are short-term and do not account for novelty effects. To address these issues, this study investigated whether personalized gamification elements integrated into a fitness course booking system had an impact on user participation in fitness courses over a long period. The study involved 52 participants who were required to pay for each course they booked, limiting their autonomy in decision-making regarding physical activity. The personalized gamification elements were tailored to specific Hexad user types, allowing researchers to investigate whether using suitable gamification elements led to increased course participation. The study lasted for 275 days (548 days including baseline), and results showed that gamification significantly increased participation in fitness courses. Furthermore, users who received a suitable set of gamification elements according to their Hexad user type showed a significant increase in participation compared to others. In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of personalized gamification approaches when motivating individuals towards physical activity and provides evidence that such approaches can lead to sustained engagement over an extended period. Future work could explore ways of addressing limitations identified in this study and further refine personalized gamification strategies based on individual preferences and motivations towards physical activity.