Videogames, gaming-related content, game aesthetics, gaming (-adjacent) platforms, gamification, and their potential link to digital extremist content and digitally-mediated radicalisation processes, are an increasingly popular topic in extremism research. Gamification, defined as “the use of game design elements in non-game contexts,” i.e. the transfer of points, badges, leaderboards, rankings, quests, and other game features into spaces not usually considered as games, is one of the gaming-related mechanisms that have been identified to make extremist online content more appealing, entertaining, and ‘fun’. Gamification has also been discussed as a potential avenue to make digital P/CVE content more engaging and increase the likelihood of such content being seen in a digital environment over-saturated with information and entertainment content. However, both the theoretical and empirical basis for a theory of the ‘gamification of radicalisation’ is slim and often relies on anecdotal evidence. One avenue to expand the theoretical foundation of this issue is to examine how different user types may react to and are affected by certain game elements. Based on a recent, more detailed discussion of user types in digital gamified radicalisation processes published in Perspectives on Terrorism, this Insight presents five ideal user types and their potential interaction with gamified extremist content. Player types are a well-known concept in the study of videogames, explaining why individuals engage differently with the various elements within videogames and why it is often beneficial to offer multiple routes to playing and winning the game. Similarly, research on gamification uncovered that different user types are motivated by and react differently to various gamified features. While gamified content may be generally appealing, not everyone will engage with game elements in the same manner. User types influence which features an individual may enjoy most and are therefore decisive in understanding which elements are most likely to engage certain users in what way. Knowledge on user types could therefore facilitate our understanding of the nuanced ways in which gamification may influence radicalisation processes or may lead to prolonged engagement with gamified extremist content, and to whom certain gamified elements may be especially appealing.
via gnet research: As You Like It: User Types in Digital Gamified Radicalisation Processes