Abstract
The current study evaluated the effects of a gamified package intervention on the accurate data entry of practicum experience hours by 15 behavior analysis graduate students at a small private university. The gamified intervention (Practicum Slayer) included feedback, added reinforcement in the form of points to access putative primary reinforcement, badges, and thematic enhancement. We compared this intervention to a feedback-only condition using a multiple-baseline design across classes. We collected weekly data on the percentage of students per class who entered data into the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB) Fieldwork Tracker with 100% accuracy. The intervention was effective at increasing accurate data entry for all classes, and 93.33% (14 of 15) of participants reached 100% accuracy in their data entry by the end of the study. Social validity data indicated that participants received the gamification package with moderate positivity. We discuss limitations of the study and areas for future research.
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Research Highlights
• Many practitioners also supervise BACB candidates completing their practicum or fieldwork experience.
• This research highlights the need for additional systems for assisting practicum or fieldwork students in entering their data according to BACB guidelines.
• Supervisors may find the gamification model helpful in incentivizing correct data entry for their practicum or fieldwork students.
• Supervisors may find the table useful as a checklist for the required components of practicum/fieldwork data entry.
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Parry-Cruwys, D., MacDonald, J. Using Gamification to Promote Accurate Data Entry of Practicum Experience Hours in Graduate Students. Behav Analysis Practice 14, 1–10 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-020-00421-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40617-020-00421-2