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Intrinsic Motivation Through Gamification: Rethinking How We Engage Learners

by Laurens Lamberts
July 7, 2025
Laurens Lambert

In this post, Laurens Lamberts summarises his talk at the MaWSIG Showcase in Edinburgh, where he spoke about the relationship between motivation and gamification, offering a framework to help teachers engage their learners.

Gamification has become a popular buzzword in education, often represented by the adoption of achievements, badges, experience points, and leaderboards into our classrooms. While these mechanics can help engage students initially, they typically only scratch the surface of what gamification can truly offer in a learning environment. If we wish to create more meaningful and long-lasting motivation in our students, we must go deeper. In particular, we need to focus not just on extrinsic rewards, but on nurturing intrinsic motivation to help students find internal reasons to engage, learn, and grow (Ryan & Deci, 2000). The key lies in understanding not only what gamification is and how it works, but also who we are designing for. By considering the different types of learners in our classrooms we can shift our focus from a one-size-fits-all model of gamified learning to one that honors the diversity of motivators among our students.

Moving Beyond Points and Prizes

Gamification in education is often implemented in superficial ways. Many platforms offer systems for earning badges, climbing leaderboards, and collecting XP (experience points) to “level up” as an alternative to traditional summative assessment. These tools are designed to mirror the reward systems in video games and often aim to trigger short-term engagement through competition and reward. However, as research by Deci, Koestner, Ryan (2001), and Groh (2012) points out, extrinsic motivators such as points and prizes can crowd out the very intrinsic motivation we want to build. When students begin learning for rewards rather than for curiosity, personal relevance, or mastery, their motivation becomes fragile and when, inevitably, the rewards are removed, so is the engagement (Lepper, Greene, & Nisbett, 1973). As educators interested in applying gamification, we must ask ourselves: What makes games truly engaging? And how can we bring that depth of engagement into our classrooms?

Games as Powerful Learning Models

When we think of our own experiences with games, especially those that keep us coming back, it becomes clear that the most powerful motivators are not always rewards. Rather, it is the sense of agency, the unfolding narrative, the thrill of solving a challenge, or the joy of exploring an open world. These are experiences that activate intrinsic motivation. They create a space where we want to be; not because we have to, but because we choose to. Research in educational psychology highlights that intrinsic motivation is fueled by three core needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Deci & Ryan, 2000). Recent findings continue to support this, showing that employing a gamified learning environment can significantly enhance students’ intrinsic motivation when they are designed to support these needs (Zhao, 2023) and they are varied enough to maintain engagement (Jaramillo-Mediavilla et al., 2024). A well-designed game provides learners with meaningful choices (autonomy), appropriate challenges and feedback (competence), as well as opportunities to connect with peers (relatedness). Gamification in education should therefore aim to replicate design principles which support these core needs, not merely copy superficial game elements like points or badges.

One of the most powerful tools which games use to achieve this is interactive narrative. When students see themselves as characters in an unfolding story—one shaped by their own choices—they become more deeply invested in the experience (Rowe et al., 2010). In your own classroom, you might frame lessons around a central theme or mission or give students choices that influence the direction of a project by allowing for alternative paths. The agency within the narrative gives students a sense of purpose and meaning. It answers the common question: Why should this matter to me?

Understanding and designing for our Learners: Bartle’s Player Taxonomy

To design for our learners effectively, we must first understand who our learners are. One useful framework comes from Richard Bartle’s player taxonomy, originally developed to describe player types in multiplayer online video games (Bartle 1996). According to Bartle, players fall into four main categories which differ greatly in size:

  1. Explorers 14%– motivated by discovery, curiosity, and learning new systems
  2. Achievers 10%– motivated by mastery, accomplishment, and competition.
  3. Socializers 75% – motivated by interaction, collaboration, and relationships.
  4. Killers 1% – motivated by dominance and impacting others, often competitively.

Traditionally, educational gamification has catered heavily to Achievers: leaderboards, points, badges, and timed challenges all align with their desire to win, master, and be recognized. But these students may represent only a fraction of the classroom. What about the Explorers, who want to explore systems and connect ideas? The Socializers, who thrive on collaboration and community? Or the Killers, who need a sense of agency and impact? By only designing for Achievers, we risk alienating the majority of our learners and denying them opportunities to unlock deeper engagement. So how do we design gamified classrooms that address the needs of all player types and foster intrinsic motivation?

1. For Explorers:

Explorers are motivated by curiosity, discovery, and freedom. They enjoy open-ended tasks that allow them to experiment, connect concepts, and learn at their own pace. Gamified lessons with branching paths, hidden “Easter eggs,” and rich narratives with lore and context appeal deeply to this group. Providing room for independent research or creative extensions of lesson content also taps into their desire to explore. These learners value the journey as much as (or more than) the outcome.

2. For Achievers:

Achievers are driven by goals, progression, and recognition. They thrive in systems that track their improvement and highlight success—badges, levels, leaderboards, and visible milestones cater to them. In education, goal-oriented tasks and tangible progress indicators help keep them engaged. However, it is important that these achievements align with meaningful, skill-based learning rather than hollow rewards. Integrating achievements within the pursuit towards real mastery ensures their intrinsic motivation grows alongside extrinsic acknowledgement.

3. For Socializers:

Socializers, by far the largest group of players, thrive on interaction, cooperation, and community. They are most motivated when learning involves communication, collaboration, and shared experiences. Design classroom quests that require teamwork, peer feedback, or character roles that foster interdependence. Narrative elements with emotional stakes and character development can also engage them more deeply. Their motivation does not come from winning, but from feeling connected and part of something meaningful.

4. For Killers:

This small group often punches far above their weight in terms of the effect they have on their surrounding players. They enjoy mastering systems, testing limits, and influencing outcomes—often competitively. Winning is not enough; they need to have an impact. Channel this drive by allowing students to take leadership roles, set challenges for others, or modify game rules within the lesson context. Giving them opportunities to challenge norms in constructive ways increases agency and ownership over learning.

Naturally, our diverse classrooms do not just include one or two of these player types. We must keep in mind which types are represented and design with those in mind. For example, instead of assigning a vocabulary worksheet, a teacher could design a mission in which students are “linguistic archaeologists” decoding lost words from an ancient civilization. Each clue leads to a deeper understanding of the language. Initially, students are assigned different roles within a team such as planner, digger, translator, and saboteur (Socializers). Subsequently, they may spend their turn uncovering hidden word roots by digging for clues (Explorers) or use that same turn to sabotage the dig site of another team instead (Killers). Eventually, when they complete a translation, they earn badges for each successful one (Achievers). In this scenario, all four player types are activated. Learning is still rigorous, and it is framed in a way that helps motivate everyone.

Rethinking Our Role as Educators

In this approach to gamification, the teacher is no longer the sole source of knowledge or control. Instead, we become designers, facilitators, and collaborators in a shared experience. This requires a mindset shift: from delivering content to crafting environments. It also means embracing uncertainty. When we empower students with choice, the outcomes are not always predictable. However, they are often more meaningful, more creative, and more enduring. Gamification, at its best, is not a gimmick. It is a philosophy of learning that centers joy, agency, and human connection (McGonigal, 2011). When we design in this way and with all learners in mind, not just the Achievers, we unlock the full potential of our classrooms.

Conclusion: From Mechanics to Meaning

Gamification is not about turning education into a game. It is about learning from what makes games compelling and using those insights to make learning more meaningful. Gamification has traditionally focused on building motivation through extrinsic reward structures as well as competition. Whereas this might resonate with some learners, our classrooms are far too diverse to apply a one-size-fits-all approach and by designing for only one type of learner, we risk disengaging the vast majority. When we look at Bartle’s Taxonomy of Players, we can draw parallels to our classrooms: the Socializers, who thrive on collaboration and connection, make up the largest segment of players and, by extension, learners. Explorers and Killers each bring unique motivations that can fuel curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking if properly activated. By moving beyond surface-level rewards and addressing the deeper motivational needs of all learner types, we can create classrooms that truly engage. The key is not only using the game mechanics themselves, but how we use them; when we design for diversity, embrace interactive narratives, and prioritize agency, we not only motivate our students, we make their learning come alive.

Laurens Lamberts is an ESL teacher and founder of “Question Gamification”, a company dedicated to designing materials that promote engagement through gamified learning and a focus on learner agency. As a lecturer, Laurens aims to support educators in bolstering their students’ intrinsic motivation and foster curiosity in the classroom. At Question Gamification, he uses familiar and accessible tools to create fully customizable learning materials, so teachers are free and able to make adaptations to better suit their learners.

References

Bartle, R. A. (1996). Hearts, clubs, diamonds, spades: Players who suit MUDs. Journal of MUD Research, 1(1). 

Deci, E. L., Koestner, R., & Ryan, R. M. (2001). Extrinsic Rewards and Intrinsic Motivation in Education: Reconsidered Once Again. Review of Educational Research, 71(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543071001001

Groh, F. (2012). Gamification: State of the art definition and utilization. Paper presented at the 4th Seminar on Research Trends in Media Informatics, Ulm University.

Jaramillo-Mediavilla, L., Basantes-Andrade, A., Cabezas-González, M., & Casillas-Martín, S. (2024). Impact of Gamification on Motivation and Academic Performance: A Systematic Review. Education Sciences, 14(6). https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci14060639

Lepper, M. R., Greene, D., & Nisbett, R. E. (1973). Undermining children’s intrinsic interest with extrinsic reward: A test of the ‘overjustification’ hypothesis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 28(1), 129–137. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0035519

McGonigal, J. (2011). Reality Is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. Penguin.

Rowe, J. P., Shores, L. R., Mott, B. W., & Lester, J. C. (2010). Integrating Learning and Engagement in Narrative Centered Learning Environments. In V. Aleven, J. Kay, & J. Mostow (Eds.), Intelligent Tutoring Systems (pp. 166–177). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-13437-1_17

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 54–67. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1020

Zhao, H. (2023). The influences of test-oriented teaching on students’ motivation for learning English: A quantitative study. Open Journal of Social Sciences, 11(1), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.4236/jss.2023.111001