Tertiary students’ acceptance of a game to teach information literacy
| Published date | 16 January 2017 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/AJIM-08-2016-0131 |
| Date | 16 January 2017 |
| Pages | 46-63 |
| Author | Yan Ru Guo,Dion Hoe-Lian Goh,Brendan Luyt |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Information behaviour & retrieval,Information & knowledge management,Information management & governance,Information management |
Tertiary students’acceptance of a
game to teach information literacy
Yan Ru Guo and Dion Hoe-Lian Goh
Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information,
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore, and
Brendan Luyt
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to investigate tertiary students’acceptance of digital game-based
learning (DGBL). Specifically, it investigated the influence of learning motivation, enjoyment, and perceived
usefulness on students’behavioral intention to play an information literacy (IL) game.
Design/methodology/approach –In total, 150 tertiary students were recruited to play an IL game, and fill
in a survey questionnaire. Multiple linear regression was performed.
Findings –Results indicated that attention, satisfaction, affective enjoyment, and perceived usefulness were
significant determinants for the behavioral intention to play IL games. However, relevance, confidence,
cognitive enjoyment, and behavioral enjoyment were not found to predict their behavioral intention.
Research limitations/implications –The authors did not consider other factors in the hypotheses, such
as the mediating effects of enjoyment on behavioral intention, and the influence of students’individual
characters such as learning styles or personalities on their behavioral intention of using DGBL. Further,
the IL game used in the study, Library Escape, may reduce generalizability of the results. The study used
self-reported attitudinal data from survey questionnaires, while behavioral data were not considered.
Practical implications –The results showed that pedagogical features, enjoyment factors, and perceived
usefulness remain critical in the uptake of IL games by students. Further, the study demonstrated that instead
of behavioral or cognitive dimensions of enjoyment, players are more concerned with affective enjoyment.
Hence, developing DGBL with affective features should be pursued.
Originality/value –By taking into consideration both pedagogical and gameplay characteristics of DGBL
to explain students’acceptance of IL games, this study integrates and extends previous studies in the context
of IL games. Additionally, instead of using perceived enjoyment as a single dimensional construct, this study
adopted a multifaceted, more nuanced perspective on the perceived enjoyment of DGBL.
Keywords Information literacy, Behavioural intention, Learning motivation, Digital game-based learning,
Educational game, Gameplay enjoyment
Paper type Research paper
1. Introduction
Digital games have been increasingly used in teaching, due to their ability to attract and engage
people effectively (Braghirolli et al., 2016). In particular, digital game-based learning (DGBL)
builds on the entertainment value of games to create instructionally sound learning experiences
and facilitate sustained learning for a wide variety of users (Erhel and Jamet, 2013). One of the
key characteristics of DGBL is the juxtaposition of learning and interactive entertainment.
It offers the potential to transform academic learning to an easier, more learner-centered, more
enjoyable, more interesting, and hence, more effective experience (All et al., 2015).
By infusing the elements of challenge, fantasy, control, feedback, and social interaction,
DGBL could immerse players in an educational virtual environment (Markey et al., 2014).
In DGBL, learning tasks are situated in meaning and relevant context as they are
immediately practiced and applied by learners in the same context (Van Eck, 2011). The rich
environment of objects and activities within DGBL provides situated meaning for the
information, and reinforce the educational content (Squire, 2015). Games are also
particularly adept at dosing information (Broussard, 2012). Complex tasks are presented
first as a small core task that is practiced multiple times before being progressively
extended into a longer, more complex tasks (Annetta, 2010; Prensky, 2003). Moreover,
Aslib Journal of Information
Management
Vol. 69 No. 1, 2017
pp. 46-63
© Emerald PublishingLimited
2050-3806
DOI 10.1108/AJIM-08-2016-0131
Received 14 August 2016
Revised 26 November 2016
Accepted 5 December 2016
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/2050-3806.htm
46
AJIM
69,1
DGBL can reinforce information acquisition through multisensory cues. The educational
content can be presented in multiple visual and auditory modes simultaneously, capitalizing
on different learning styles (Gee, 2003).
Digital game-based learning has becomea key segment in the games market as well as in
academic research. As a result, libraries have tapped into DGBL to promote information
literacy (IL)instruction. For example, the University of California at San Diego and at Merced
developed a mobile game, SCaVeNGeR for IL instruction (McMunn-Tetangco, 2013). It is a
social location-based game to introducestudents to the physical librariesin the two campuses.
Further,Carnegie Mellon University designedtwo IL games called Within Range andI’ll Get It
(Beck et al., 2008). Within Range aims to teach students about how collectionsare shelved in
their libraries,and asks the players to sortthree shelves of books. I’ll Get It putsplayers in the
role of a referencelibrarian at a busy academic library’s information desk. Thegame requires
players to prioritize the library patrons so that no one is waiting too long, and fulfill their
information requests by selecting the most appropriate resources for them.
However, in the rush to produce fun and educational IL games, many have failed;
sometimes because learners do not always use them as expected (McMunn-Tetangco, 2013),
or sometimes because the learning performance is unsatisfactory (Markey et al., 2014).
Different from entertainment games that only focus on providing enjoyable gameplay
experiences, DGBL also aims to help players acquire knowledge from the gameplay
experience. So far, studies have examined students’behavioral intention by using short
survey questionnaires with two or three items, or anecdotal quotations, but systematic
research to investigate the factors influencing the acceptance of IL games is lacking.
Understanding students’behavioral intention is an important first step for researchers in
their quest to motivate students to use IL games.
Therefore, this paper aims to bridge the aforementioned gap by examining the factors
influencing tertiary students’acceptance of IL games. In our work, user acceptance was
examined by students’behavioral intention to play IL games, which refers to the degree to
which students have formulated plans to play IL games in the future (Venkatesh and Bala,
2008). Behavioral intention has frequently been used as a surrogate for actual performance
(Bickmore et al., 2013). Library Escape, an educational game developed by the authors, was
employed in the study (Guo and Goh, 2016). The game aims to teach IL skills to tertiary
students. In the study, tertiary students were recruited to play the game and complete an
online survey, which included factors on learning motivation, gameplay enjoyment, and
perceived usefulness of the IL game.
2. IL games evaluation
Many academic libraries have utilized DGBL to teach IL skills. For example, Utah Valley
University developed two games to introduce the library to students: Get a Clue and
LibraryCraft (Smith and Baker, 2011). Get a Clue aims to introduce new students to the
physical layout of the library building by playing the game. The game is built around a
mystery with many clues. Players follow a detective to solve a crime and travel to different
parts of the library. In the initial evaluation of Get a Clue, almost half of the participants
were confused about the gameplay. The library revised the game, and evaluated it again
with over 300 students using a short survey with four questions. Results indicated that most
students found the revised game easy to follow, and the game reached students who had
minimal exposure to the library. The other game, LibraryCraft, aims to familiarize students
with the library’s website and digital resources. A short survey was attached at the end of
the game for evaluation purposes. Among the 52 students who completed LibraryCraft,
a majority agreed that the game was fun, and they learnt something useful.
Further, the University of California at San Diego and at Merced (McMunn-Tetangco,
2013) developed a mobile game, SCaVeNGeR. It is a social location-based game to introduce
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Tertiary
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acceptance
of a game
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