Playful learning in the twenty-first century: Motivational variables, interest assessment, and games

Abstract

The motivational terms of engagement, interest, and motivation are usually used interchangeably across disciplines. This trend is problematic because each construct has unique characteristics that either differ or overlap each other, and as a result, empirical works that are unclear about which construct is being measured attributes to muddling the overall quality of the research area on interest development. The issue of interest measurement is further complicated by the increased use of technology and games for learning. The purpose of this literature review is to first provide definitions of engagement, interest, and motivation as well as their relationship to each other in learning. Then, I inspect previous methods used to assess interest and report on the recent assessments of interest development using analog and digital games for learning. Empirical works selected for this literature review directly measuring interest and were recent publications (< 5 years), and a total of seven studies in out-of-school K-12 learning settings were examined in detail. Findings from the literature review show that interest assessment has traditionally relied on self-report measures over a brief period of time, whereas ideally a more accurate representation of interest tracking pairs’ self-report measures with fieldwork across an individual’s lifespan. A common occurrence found in interest assessment studies include small sample groups and an inconsistency in measurements of interest. Further research is needed to develop an instrument or methodology that can measure interest in isolation from other motivational variables and for adaption across disciplines.