An Investigation of the Effect of Competition on the Way Students Engage in Game-Based Deliberate Practice

Abstract

This paper reports the results of an experiment that used qualitative and quantitative methods to investigate the effect of competition on students' use of game-based deliberate practice. We hypothesized that the results of the experiment would show that competition has a positive effect on performance outcomes, but it also increases students' tendency to game the system. The actual results of the experiment showed only very modest support for these hypotheses but have other implications for improving the design of educational games.