Elsevier

Computers & Education

Volume 66, August 2013, Pages 74-82
Computers & Education

Using the saliency-based model to design a digital archaeological game to motivate players' intention to visit the digital archives of Taiwan's natural science museum

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2013.02.007Get rights and content

Abstract

Museums in Taiwan have developed various digital archives, but few people have visited these digital archives. Therefore, this study designed a digital archaeology game for high school students to play. Based on the concept of “learning for playing” (i.e., players who want to win will study more), the digital archaeology game contest aims at attracting students to visit the natural science digital museum. In the game, researchers (players) reorient the artifacts, structures and architectures through excavation and assemblages to understand the world of natural science based on the saliency-based model. To examine whether this game prompts learners to visit the natural science digital museum to acquire knowledge, 80 students from three high schools were recruited and grouped into 40 pairs to compete against each other. After the contest, questionnaires were collected and analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis with structural equation modeling. The results indicated that the research participants' gameplay self-efficacy affected their perceived hedonic values and was mediated by the perceived ease of playing the game increased their intention to visit the digital archives of the natural science museum. The implications of this study could be used for promotion of digital archives or other digital museums.

Highlights

► This study designed a digital archaeology game for a natural science museum. ► We examine if games promote knowledge acquiring and visits to the museum. ► Results showed gameplay self-efficacy affected interest to play. ► Which is mediated by the perceived ease of playing the game. ► This study showed digital archives and digital museums can be promoted.

Introduction

Perception refers to the detection and interpretation of sensory stimuli or “environmental cues” (Solso, 1979). Perceptual learning is a process of discovering how to transform previously overlooked sensory stimulation into effective information (Gibson, 1969; Lu, Yuc, Watanabed, Sagie, & Levi, 2009). Today, more than 50 laboratories around the world are conducting research about perceptual learning. They are using techniques ranging from single-unit recording to human psychophysics and brain imaging (Lu et al., 2009). It is rare to study perceptual learning as it relates to a game-based approach and to take into account other relevant and dependent cognitive processes such as learning, decision making, and action selection.

A visual-cognitive system known as the saliency-based model, which was introduced by Koch and Ullman (1985) and Itti, Koch, and Niebur (1998), is based on the saliency concept. This model mimics the overall structure of the early visual system, which detects locations that convey visual signals from its surroundings (Peters & Itti, 2008). Thus, the saliency-based model has pattern recognition abilities for a variety of tasks that can be improved by learning or training (Dahmen & King, 2007). The present study proposed that the digital archaeological game be built upon the saliency-based model so that the game player would interact with relevant objects in a scene through object recognition, creating situational interest in playing the digital archaeology game and intention to visit the digital archives.

Regarding the determinants of behavioral intention, the study adapted the theory of reasoned action (TRA) (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980) to examine game players' favorable perception of hedonic values. In addition to TRA, Davis' (1989) proposed technology acceptance model (TAM) identifies two user beliefs--perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use--as the main determinants for individuals' behavioral intention to use information systems. Turel, Serenko, and Bontis (2010) note that technology may influence individuals either utilitarian or hedonic value to determine his or her behavior adoption, that is, perceived usefulness, which is affected by perceived ease of use (Davis, 1989), mainly includes utilitarian and hedonic values. As Hassenzahl and Tractinsky (2006) describe how an interactive product is made valuable: the pragmatic and hedonic aspects are required, the present study then observed utilitarian values as pragmatic in the game performance, in terms of competition score, and explored its correlation to hedonic values.

In addition to those internal constructs of TAM, Venkatesh (1999) proposes self-efficacy as the key external construct used in task-specific self-efficacy, such as computer self-efficacy and Internet self-efficacy. This study examines gameplay self-efficacy. Accordingly, identifying the mechanism of perceived ease of play and the hedonic value of the digital archaeology game is needed to prompt high school students' intention to visit the digital archives. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine how gameplay efficacy and perceived hedonic values mediated by perceived ease of play and game performance can influence visitation to the digital archives of the science museum.

Section snippets

Research background

According to Taiwan's 2008 “National Science and Technology Program for e-Learning (ELNP)” summary report, indicated there has been a considerable amount of government support for Digital application programs. To add perceived value to the digital archives, this study has designed a digital archaeology game. Two modes of interaction between computer games and learning are “learning for playing” and “learning from playing.” Amory (2010) defines learning from playing, such as drill and practice

Research design

Given a task definition, the saliency model determines and stores the task-relevant entities in working memory using prior knowledge stored in the long-term memory. The model attends to the most salient location in the scene and attempts to recognize the attended object by matching object representations stored in long-term memory. Instead of a preformed definition in the form of keywords or a sentence for a particular task, we want to allow the player to manipulate the basic saliency map. This

Research results

Partial least squares (PLS) software was used for analysis to measure and verify the structural model at small sample size (Chin & Newsted, 1999). Thus, the present study used Visual PLS1.04 to estimate and verify path coefficients in the structural model and the model's explanatory power. These estimations were to first assess the measured constructs' reliability and validity, then to examine the relationship between the different constructs (Fig. 4). The reliability and validity of research

Discussion and conclusion

De Freitas and Oliver (2006) proposed that a game framework to motivate players should be flexible and easy to use and should prompt players to reflect upon learning processes and approaches. The framework should reflect upon how games can support curriculum content most effectively. With these features in mind, this study designed a DigiArchae game based on the saliency theory to explore the effect on students' intention to visit the digital archive of a science museum. In brief, H1 and H2

Acknowledgment

This research was sponsored by Taiwan National Science Council (NSC 99-2511-S-003-017-MY3 and NSC 101-2511-S-003-006). We would like to thank all those students who gave their time to take in this study and complete questionnaires.

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