Increasing knowledge about plasma and plasma donation through a serious game: Evidence from a mixed-method study

Many European countries are facing plasma shortages, with lack of awareness and knowledge about plasma donation being a potential explanation for low donor numbers. One approach to increasing knowledge and awareness about plasma is through informal educational methods, such as serious games. We developed a serious game focused on plasma and plasma donation for children and adolescents (8–17 years) in the Netherlands and tested it with 636 participants in collaboration with the science museum NEMO Amsterdam. The effectiveness of the game was assessed by measuring the change in knowledge about plasma and plasma donation from open-ended questions in a pen-and-paper questionnaire participants completed before and after playing the game. A Wilcoxon Signed-Rank Test revealed an increase in knowledge after playing the game, demonstrating that the game effectively educates players about plasma donation. No statistically significant relationship was found between knowledge increase and sociodemographic characteristics, nor with gameplay experiences. For educators and game designers, our game shows that even simple game designs and mechanics can be effective in imparting knowledge, while also preventing disparities in learning outcomes with respect to age, gender, and technical skills in playing games. For researchers, our study paves the way for a new line of research into the application of serious games in healthcare beyond clinical contexts, such as disease prevention or management. Importantly, our study highlights the potential of serious games to foster knowledge about health-related prosocial behaviours, possibly inspiring future research evaluating their potential as innovative teaching methods to address critical public health issues.