We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Nutrition Science and Behavioral Theories Integrated in a Serious Game for Adolescents.
- Authors
Majumdar, Dalia; Koch, Pamela A.; Lee Gray, Heewon; Contento, Isobel R.; de Lourdes Islas-Ramos, Ana; Fu, Daniel
- Abstract
Purpose. Serious games have demonstrated positive effects on adolescent eating and physical activity. The purpose of this paper is to describe how constructs from social cognitive theory (SCT) and self-determination theory (SDT) were operationalized in the development of the serious game CREATURE 101 (C-101) to engage players in acquiring motivation, knowledge, skills, and personal agency.Approach. C-101 was developed from an evaluated nutrition and science curriculum for middle school youth, Choice, Control & Change (C3). Its behavior change goals are three pairs of “increase/decrease” behaviors: increase water / decease sweetened beverages, increase fruit and vegetables / decrease processed snacks (chips, candy etc), and increase physical activity (light, medium, intense) / decrease recreational screen time (watching TV, playing video games for fun) through a “virtual companion care” motif where the players bring their adopted creatures back to health. Several procedures or strategies were used to develop the story line and activities in C-101 to address autonomy, competence and relatedness from SDT and outcome expectations, self-efficacy, and behavioral capability from SCT, constructs shown in previous studies as likely to enhance effectiveness of nutrition and physical activity interventions.Implications. This description of how the theory constructs and procedures were used to create an entertaining serious game based on an existing evaluated health-related curriculum can help game developers, curriculum developers, and educators who wish to expand existing curricula through the development and integration of games into their work.
- Subjects
VIDEO games; NUTRITION research; SELF-determination theory; SOCIAL cognitive theory; ELECTRONIC games; NUTRITION counseling
- Publication
Simulation & Gaming, 2015, Vol 46, Issue 1, p68
- ISSN
1046-8781
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1177/1046878115577163