Analysis of research on gamification, critical thinking and academic performance: A systematic review in the context of higher education

Gamification has become relevant in the field of higher education, facilitating the teaching and learning process. There are studies that show a positive relationship between gamification and academic performance. A systematic literature review was developed, applying the prism method and using three databases: Scopus, WOS and Scielo. The results indicate a notorious orientation of the studies towards quantitative research. Ninety-two percent of the selected documents have students as their population, while 6% are oriented to teachers and 2% to both. In the more in-depth results, it can be demonstrated that gamification is linked to the generation of critical thinking and the improvement of academic performance in the context of higher education. The analysis of theoretical structures reveals that the most relevant approaches for the study of gamification are self-determination and gamified learning. It is also evident that there is a positive relationship between gamification and motivation in learning processes, which allows encouraging the development of critical thinking and the improvement of academic performance.