How Gamified Fitness Features Influence the System Usage: A Field Experimental Approach

The flourishment of mobile applications leads to the fierce competition. To avoid users to prompt abandonment, mobile application producers constantly add features into the m-app to increase the usage. Gamification has been widely regarded as an effective approach to improve the system usage. However, previous studies emphasized on particular or certain gamified features which stimulated the intrinsic motivations. In this study, we focus on the fitness tracking feature, which can active the integrated intrinsic motivation (i.e., health benefit), and design gamified mechanisms to examine their impacts on improving the usage. As a research-in-progress study, we have detailed the literature reviews and the preliminary hypotheses development. The design and procedures of a prospective field experiment are also presented. In addition, to better understand individual psychological impetus, a follow-up survey will also be conducted. A series of measurement items are presented in the end.