Playing for better health: Gamification in digital workplace health promotion - A structured review of design elements, outcomes, and mechanisms from a self-determination theory perspective.

BACKGROUND: Digital technologies increasingly shape the work environment of knowledge workers and can negatively affect employee well-being. While organizations have introduced digital workplace health promotion programs to address these challenges, many initiatives struggle with low engagement. Gamification is considered a promising approach to enhance participation, yet it remains unclear how different game design elements influence various dimensions of employee well-being, leaving organizations with limited guidance on how to design effective gamified health interventions.

OBJECTIVE: This study examines how gamification in digital workplace health promotion programs contributes to employee well-being by (1) identifying the targeted well-being dimensions, (2) analyzing game design elements and their theoretical foundations, and (3) extracting Self-Determination Theory-related success factors.

METHOD: We conducted a structured literature review across AIS eLibrary, PubMed, JSTOR, ScienceDirect, and Web of Science, last searched in 2023. The search yielded a total of 823 papers for screening. Studies were included if they empirically examined gamification technologies in workplace contexts and their effects on well-being or health-related behavior among knowledge workers; non-empirical studies, studies outside the workplace context, and studies without gamification or well-being-related outcomes were excluded. Eligible studies were analyzed using a concept matrix to systematically map game design elements, well-being dimensions, and Self-Determination Theory-related success factors.

RESULTS: Eighteen studies were included in the final synthesis. Most studies focused on physical well-being, while mental well-being and job-related outcomes were examined less frequently. Four design strategies emerged: progress-, social-, financial-, and immersion-oriented elements. Self-Determination Theory appears useful for understanding gamification effects, although few studies explicitly apply theoretical frameworks.

CONCLUSION: Gamified digital workplace health promotion programs show promise in enhancing employee well-being, yet existing research remains conceptually narrow and insufficiently theory driven. Therefore, we propose a research agenda calling for greater conceptual clarity, stronger theoretical grounding, and the evaluation of long-term, personalized, and adverse effects.