Evaluation of an industrial case of gamification in software quality improvement

The value of industrial-scale gamification interventions for improving software quality is a topic of interest for software engineering research; but it has not frequently been analysed from the perspective of the developer’s experiences. The objective of this study is to qualitatively evaluate developers’ experiences in a team-based, leaderboard-style gamification intervention in a large software house. To understand the dynamics of positive outcomes in improving code security and quality, semi-structured interviews were conducted regarding both technical and psychosocial aspects. Eight members of three different leaderboard teams with different standings in the final leaderboard were interviewed, and the transcripts were examined using Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. The results showed that the gamification intervention did result in positive individual and team-based awareness and behaviour change in a range of technical practices such as unit testing, code reviewing, and design. Post intervention, the participants discussed how their motivation, sense of belonging, and communication improved, also expressing concerns over attainability and fairness of gamification goals and relevance to existing workload.  The experiential perspective emerging from analysed themes gives broader insights in technical and socio-psychological dimensions than available in the current literature.