Robertson Michael C, Baranowski Tom, Thompson Debbe, Basen-Engquist Karen M, Swartz Maria Chang, Lyons Elizabeth J
Department of Nutrition, Metabolism & Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Galveston, TX, United States.
U.S. Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States.
JMIR Serious Games. 2021 Dec 3;9(4):e29964. doi: 10.2196/29964.
Games for health are a promising approach to health promotion. Their success depends on achieving both experiential (game) and instrumental (health) objectives. There is little to guide game for health (G4H) designers in integrating the science of behavior change with the art of game design.
The aim of this study is to extend the Behaviour Change Wheel program planning model to develop Challenges for Healthy Aging: Leveraging Limits for Engaging Networked Game-Based Exercise (CHALLENGE), a G4H centered on increasing physical activity in insufficiently active older women.
We present and apply the G4H Mechanics, Experiences, and Change (MECHA) process, which supplements the Behaviour Change Wheel program planning model. The additional steps are centered on identifying target G4H player experiences and corresponding game mechanics to help game designers integrate design elements and G4H objectives into behavioral interventions.
We identified a target behavior of increasing moderate-intensity walking among insufficiently active older women and key psychosocial determinants of this behavior from self-determination theory (eg, autonomy). We used MECHA to map these constructs to intervention functions (eg, persuasion) and G4H target player experiences (eg, captivation). Next, we identified behavior change techniques (eg, framing or reframing) and specific game mechanics (eg, transforming) to help realize intervention functions and elicit targeted player experiences.
MECHA can help researchers map specific linkages between distal intervention objectives and more proximal game design mechanics in games for health. This can facilitate G4H program planning, evaluation, and clearer scientific communication.
健康游戏是一种很有前景的健康促进方法。其成功取决于实现体验性（游戏）和工具性（健康）目标。在将行为改变科学与游戏设计艺术相结合方面，几乎没有什么能指导健康游戏（G4H）设计师。
本研究的目的是扩展行为改变轮项目规划模型，以开发《健康老龄化挑战：利用限制因素促进基于网络的游戏锻炼》（CHALLENGE），这是一款以增加缺乏运动的老年女性身体活动为中心的G4H游戏。
我们提出并应用了G4H机制、体验和改变（MECHA）过程，该过程补充了行为改变轮项目规划模型。额外的步骤集中在识别目标G4H玩家体验和相应的游戏机制，以帮助游戏设计师将设计元素和G4H目标整合到行为干预中。
我们确定了一个目标行为，即增加缺乏运动的老年女性的中等强度步行，并从自我决定理论（如自主性）中确定了该行为的关键心理社会决定因素。我们使用MECHA将这些结构映射到干预功能（如说服）和G4H目标玩家体验（如吸引力）。接下来，我们确定了行为改变技术（如构建框架或重新构建框架）和特定的游戏机制（如转变），以帮助实现干预功能并引发目标玩家体验。
MECHA可以帮助研究人员在健康游戏中描绘远端干预目标与更接近的游戏设计机制之间的具体联系。这可以促进G4H项目的规划、评估和更清晰的科学交流。
