Economics · Level 2 · Intermediate
Gamification of Dietary Decision-Making in an Elementary-School Cafeteria
Jones BA, Madden GJ, Wengreen HJ, et al. (2014). PLOS ONE. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0093872 · CC BY 4.0
Step 1 of 2Read the paper
Can a cheap, story-based game nudge a whole school to eat more fruit and vegetables? In one US school (180 pupils), the researchers set daily school-wide eating goals and rewarded success only with virtual prizes in a sci-fi story. They measured eating by weighing food and waste, and switched between fruit and vegetable goals day by day.
How to read it
- Read the last two paragraphs of the Introduction to see why low cost and low staff time matter.
- Study Equation 1 and the Gamification phase section: how consumption was measured and goals were set.
- Use Table 1 to check which food was targeted and whether the goal was met each day.
- Read Results and "Other Limitations" side by side before judging the conclusions.
Step 2 of 2Take the test
15 questions · about 40 minutes including reading · pick an answer to see straight away if it’s right. Nothing is saved.
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Paper: Jones BA, Madden GJ, Wengreen HJ, et al., PLOS ONE (2014), licensed CC BY 4.0. Summary and questions are Research Nest’s own; read the original for the full study.