Developing a Video Game to Increase Intrinsic Motivation to Exercise

Wei Peng, Brian Winn, Karin Pfeiffer, Julia Crouse and Jih-Hsuan Tammy Lin

Abstract

This study sought to understand how to design an exergame to increase motivation for physical activity with regard to college students. The current research reports the findings of the initial phase of developing the exergame grounded in Self-Determination Theory. Two rounds of formative evaluation studies were conducted. In the first round, four focus groups were conducted to gain insights from the target population about their reception of the proposed exergame concept. In the second round, participants as a group played the game prototype that was developed based on the first round focus groups and provide feedback and suggestions in a focus group format. In addition, four participants played the game with a device that recorded their energy expenditure during game play on an individual basis and were interviewed after game play using the same questions used in the focus groups. The two rounds of formative evaluation confirmed many of the proposed design features. The design team also obtained valuable suggestions from the focus group participants on how to improve usability and playability of the game.