Health and Fitness Apps: An Analysis of Gamification Elements in Austria

Gamification has been recognized as an important factor driving user engagement and satisfaction. However, few studies have conducted an in-depth analysis of gamification elements in health and fitness apps. The fundamental objective of this research study was to fill this gap by providing insights into the prevalence of gamification in health and fitness apps. To achieve this, a list of 24 gamification elements has been determined based on a systematic review of the literature and 38 health and fitness apps from the Austrian App Store have been analysed for their implementation of gamification.
The results show that 37 of the reviewed apps in Austria include some form of gamification, however the elements considered crucial by research for ensuring high customer satisfaction and retention were found to be sparingly integrated. This research incentivizes app providers to make more use of gamification in apps and tailor its implementation to better meet customers’ needs.