Trust as a Currency: Using Serious Gaming to Survey Sensitive Data

The use of surveys for data collection is ubiquitous in many fields, however, it is often criticized for a number of shortcomings including self-report bias, social desirability bias, and low response rates especially in... [ view full abstract ]

The use of surveys for data collection is ubiquitous in many fields, however, it is often criticized for a number of shortcomings including self-report bias, social desirability bias, and low response rates especially in longitudinal studies. Traditionally, surveys were administered in paper format, but the advent of the Internet has enabled researchers to deliver surveys through various online formats [1-3]. While online survey distribution can make the recruitment of study subjects easier on the researcher, the now commonplace announcements of data breaches suffered by both governmental and private companies may lower respondents’ willingness to answer online surveys if the questions concern sensitive personal data.

In order to address some of the problems inherent in survey-based data collection, particularly low response rates and social desirability, researchers are evaluating the process of disguising the survey in a game. In the past, gamification has not fared significantly better than other survey methods in all areas, specifically in regards to completion rates and longitudinal stability [4]. The challenges of serious game research are multifactor, and include enticing participants to participate and complete the survey, building a trustworthy platform and being able to cultivate trust with the participant, despite the periodic need for deception and the sensitive nature of research.

This research will examine the concept of trust as a currency in increasing responses to sensitive survey questions in an online game-simulation environment. While the idea of trust as currency is not inherently new, it will be examined in a human-computer interface (HCI) context with an emphasis on current events and other factors involved in the trust-building process. Trust can be examined in two phases, building trust and spending trust, similar to the bid price and asking price of economics. Trust is built gradually, incrementally; and then trust is spent, guiding the decision making process and actions. This research will propose a model for building a trustworthy platform and communicating clearly to the participant in order to build trust. The hypothesis is that serious game simulation has the potential to generate more data than other types of surveys, and that there is a deficiency in current literature at the intersection of computer-mediated interpersonal trust and survey data.

 
References

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[4] Mavletova, A. “A Gamification Effect in Longitudinal Web Surveys Among Children and Adolescents”, International Journal of Market Research, Vol. 57, No. 3, 2014, pp. 413-438.