Relationship between gamification elements and social and human factors using the simple additive weighting method

Abstract

Gamification is a strategy to stimulate social and human factors (SHF) that influence software development productivity. However, software development teams must improve their productivity to face the challenges of software development organizations. Traditionally, productivity analysis only includes technical factors. Literature shows the importance of SHFs in productivity. Furthermore, gamification elements can contribute to enhancing such factors to improve performance. Thus, to design strategies to enhance a specific SHF, it is essential to identify how gamification elements are related to these factors. The objective of this research is to determine the relationship between gamification elements and SHF that influence the productivity of software development teams. This research included the design of a scoring template to collect data from the experts. The importance was calculated using the Simple Additive Weighting (SAW) method as a tool framed in decision theory. Three criteria were considered: cumulative score, matches in inclusion, and values. The relationships of importance serve as a reference value in designing gamification strategies that promote improved productivity. It extends the path toward analyzing the effect of gamification on the productivity of software development. This relationship facilitates designing and implementing gamification strategies to improve productivity.