Game-based Career Learning Support for Youth: Effects of playing the Youth@Work Game on Career Adaptability

摘要

Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions that youth has to take but many young peoplefind this a hard issue to engage with. Current career counselling practice does not appear verycompelling or motivating to young people. Professional games could provide a more engaging andmotivating way of acquiring professional awareness and competence for career decision making andlearning. We present the design and effects of playing a game that aims to increase career awarenessand adaptabilities in youth (13-19 years). In a Randomized Controlled Trial, 93 high school studentsfrom Iceland and Romania were asked to carry out career-oriented activities, with half playing aninteractive game and the other half performing a paper-and-pencil version of the same activities. Thestudents were compared on their career awareness and adaptabilities and perceptions of career learningbefore and after these interventions. Main results show that engaging players in these career-orientedactivities has short term effects on outcome scores for career adaptabilities and for perceptions ofcareer learning competences. Students who played the game report significantly faster growth oncareer adaptabilities that deal with “concern”, “control” and “confidence”. It can therefore beconcluded that introducing game-based learning in career decision support for youth is a promisingendeavour.