This document provides a chronological overview of definitions for the term "gamification" from 2002 to 2014 from various sources such as websites, books, papers, and magazines. Early definitions in the 2000s focus on applying game mechanics to non-game contexts to increase engagement. Definitions from the 2010s emphasize using game design elements and principles to motivate and engage users for goals like learning, productivity, or customer loyalty. Later definitions distinguish gamification from games and specify it as applying gameful experiences and design to contexts not primarily involving gaming.

1. Kappen- PhD Thesis – ABD –WIP
Gamification Definitions
Gamification Definition Context Month Year Source Type
? 2002 Nick Pelling website
"taking game mechanics and applying to
other web properties to increase
engagement"
"gameification"
of the web June 2008
Brett Terrrill (2008-06-16).
http://www.bretterrill.com/2008/06/my-
coverage-of-lobby-of-social-gaming.html Website
"taking action in a well defined context
with a clear rewards structure can be flat
out meaningful for people" marketing November 2008
James Currier (2008-11-05)
http://blog.oogalabs.com/2008/11/05/gamific
ation-game-mechanics-is-the-new-marketing/ Website
"Driving deeper customer engagement
through the Power of Play"
“gameification
” of loyalty July 2009
Barry Kirk and Tim Crank (2009-07)
http://www.scribd.com/doc/17718638/Loyalt
y-Expo-2009-in-Review
With “gamification,” companies study and
identify natural human tendencies and
employ game-like mechanisms to give
customers a sense that they’re having fun
while working towards a rewards-based
goal Industry September 2010
JP Mangalindan (2010-09-03). "Play to win:
The game-based economy". Fortune
(magazine). Retrieved 2014-10-13
http://fortune.com/2010/09/03/play-to-win-
the-game-based-economy/ Magazine
"The process of game-thinking and game
mechanics to engage users and solve
problems" Industry August 2011
Zichermann, Gabe; Cunningham, Christopher
(August 2011). "Preface".Gamification by
Design: Implementing Game Mechanics in
Web and Mobile Apps (1st ed.). Sebastopol,
California: O'Reilly Media. pp. ix, 208. ISBN
1449315399. Book
"the use of game design elements in non-
game contexts" September 2011
Deterding, S., Dixon, D., Khaled, R., & Nacke,
L. E. (2011). From Game Design Elements to
Gamefulness : Defining “ Gamification .” In
MindTrek’11, September 28-30, 2011,
Tampere, Finland. (pp. 9–15).
peer
reviewed
paper

2. Kappen- PhD Thesis – ABD –WIP
“the addition of elements commonly
associated with games (e.g. game
mechanics) to an educational or training
program in order to make the learning
process more engaging" education 2011
Landers, R. N., & Callan, R. C. (2011). Serious
Games and Edutainment Applications. In M.
Ma, A. Oikonomou, & L. C. Jain (Eds.), Serious
Games and Edutainment Applications (pp.
399–423). London: Springer London.
doi:10.1007/978-1-4471-2161-9
"a process of enhancing a service with
affordances for gameful experiences in
order to support user's overall value
creation"
Service
Industry-
Marketing October 2012
Huotari, K., & Hamari, J. (2012). Defining
Gamification - A Service Marketing
Perspective. In Proc. of MindTrek 2012.
peer
reviewed
paper
"Gamification is the use of game elements
and game design techniques in non-game
contexts" Business October 2012
Werbach, K. and Hunter D. (2012). For The
Win. Philadelphia: Wharton Digital Press. Book
"as incorporating game elements into a
non-gaming software application to
increase user experience and engagement" December 2012
Domínguez, A., Saenz-de-Navarrete, J., de-
Marcos, L., Fernández-Sanz, L., Pagés, C., &
Martínez-Herráiz, J.-J. (2013). Gamifying
learning experiences: Practical implications
and outcomes. Computers & Education, 63,
380–392. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2012.12.020
Peer-
reviewed
"Gamification is the craft of deriving all
the fun and addicting elements found in
games and applying them to real-world or
productive activities" Industry April 2013
Chou, Y., Octalysis: Complete Gamification
Framework http://www.yukaichou.com/
gamification-examples/octalysis-complete-
gamification-framework/ (12.04.2013)
Werbach, website
"Gamification is implementing design
concepts from games, loyalty programs,
and behavioral economics to drive user
engagement" Industry June 2013
Zichermann, G. and Linder J.(2013). The
Gamification Revolution. New Delhi: McGraw
Hill Education (India) Private Limited. Book
"simple gameplay to support productive
interaction for expected types of learners
and instructors" education June 2013
Rughiniș, R. (2013). Gamification for
Productive Interaction Reading and Working
with the Gamification Debate in Education. In
Proc. of 8th Iberian Conference on
Information Systems and Technologies (CISTI)
(pp. 1–5).
peer-
reviewed

3. Kappen- PhD Thesis – ABD –WIP
"gamification should influence human
behaviour through engaging experiences,
using game design principles in decision-
making applications and services not
related to gaming" October 2013
Kappen, D. L., & Nacke, L. E. (2013). The
Kaleidoscope of Effective Gamification :
Deconstructing Gamification in Business
Applications. In Gamification 2013 (pp. 119–
122).
peer-
reviewed
“the process of making activities more
game-like” January 2014
Werbach, K. (2014). ( Re ) Defining
Gamification. Persuasive 2014, Lecture Notes
in Computer Science 8462 (2014),
2014(January).
“the use of game mechanics and
experience design to digitally engage and
motivate people to achieve their goals” April 2014
Brian Burke (2014-04-04)
http://blogs.gartner.com/brian_burke/2014/0
4/04/gartner-redefines-gamification/ website
"employer-imposed game in a work
environment where the goals of the game
are designed to reinforce the goals and
purpose of the employer" Industry September 2014
Mollick, E., & Rothbard, N. (2014). Mandatory
Fun : Gamification and the Impact of Games at
Work. The Wharton School Research Paper
Series, (September), 1–51. Retrieved from
http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2277103
"the intentional use of game elements for
a gameful experience of non-game tasks
and contexts" October 2014
Seaborn, K., & Fels, D. I. (2014). Gamification
in Theory and Action: A Survey. Internatoinal
Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 74, 14–
31. doi:10.1016/j.ijhcs.2014.09.006