How gamification of an enterprise collaboration system increases knowledge contribution: an affordance approach
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine how gamification increases employees’ knowledge contribution to the place of work. It develops and tests the conjecture that gamification adds hedonic value to the use of an enterprise collaboration system (ECS), which, in turn, increases in both the quality and quantity of knowledge contribution.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing on the framework of successful gamification against a backdrop of affordance theory, this study develops and tests a theoretical model that explains the effects of gamification affordances on knowledge contribution via the use of an ECS. Empirical data were gathered from 166 employees at a global company that used a gamified ECS designed to aid knowledge sharing.
Findings
Results using structural equation modeling showed that three gamification affordances – rewardability, competition and visibility of achievement – jointly influenced employees’ perceived hedonic value of the ECS, which, in turn, increased knowledge contribution.
Practical implications
The results indicate that designing affordances that can increase hedonic value is central to facilitating employees’ knowledge contribution. However, simply incorporating game artifacts does not guarantee increased hedonic value of an ECS. Instead, assessing, monitoring and diagnosing what affordances users perceive from the use of a gamified system are important.
Originality/value
By conceptualizing gamification affordances rather than specifying the design features of enterprise applications, this study provides meaningful insights into how the benefits of gamification can be harnessed for knowledge management in organizations.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This research was supported in part by grant No. CityU 11531016 from the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong SAR awarded to the first author and grant No. CityU 11507815 awarded to the second author.
Citation
Suh, A. and Wagner, C. (2017), "How gamification of an enterprise collaboration system increases knowledge contribution: an affordance approach", Journal of Knowledge Management, Vol. 21 No. 2, pp. 416-431. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-10-2016-0429
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited