Publication Type

Journal Article

Version

publishedVersion

Publication Date

2-2025

Abstract

Air quality is crucial to our health and well-being, as poor air quality can lead to serious health problems such as asthma, allergies, and other respiratory conditions. Educating people about air quality is key to improving awareness and taking action to reduce its negative effects. Gamification offers a creative and engaging way to deliver educational content by incorporating game elements into the learning experience. However, despite its potential, there has been no review of how gamification has been used for air quality education. Thus, this review aims to fill that gap by systematically examining how gamification is applied to air quality education in the built environment. We explored a range of games and applications used to educate the public on air quality. To guide our analysis, we used the Octalysis framework, which focuses on game elements that motivate and engage users. Following the PRISMA guidelines for systematic reviews, we identified 19 relevant papers published between 2009 and 2023. From these, we developed 8 research questions to guide the review process and analyzed the game elements using the Octalysis framework. Our findings show that most studies focus on residential buildings, with a key focus on raising awareness of the health impacts of air pollution and managing asthma. Notably, many of these studies target children, who are more vulnerable to air pollution. We also introduce the first taxonomy for gamification in air quality education, providing a clear structure for future game development in this area. Finally, the review highlights the need to explore other educational topics that could benefit from gamification, and how this approach could improve both indoor and urban air quality, as well as reduce energy consumption.

Keywords

Gamification, Serious games, Game mechanics, Education, Public awareness, Indoor air quality, Outdoor air pollution, Mold assessment, Asthma management, Taxonomy

Discipline

Environmental Sciences | Physical and Environmental Geography

Research Areas

Integrative Research Areas

Publication

Building and Environment

Volume

270

First Page

1

Last Page

24

ISSN

0360-1323

Identifier

10.1016/j.buildenv.2025.112526

Publisher

Elsevier

Copyright Owner and License

Authors-CC-BY

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

Additional URL

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2025.112526

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