Developing a gamified platform to involve unemployed youth in job-seeking activities

Abstract Although it is commonly known that young people are active online users, the challenge is, how to attract them to use job-seeking services. Using game design elements in non-game context to create immersive experiences can have a significant impact on the usage of motivation. Our interest was to examine how to find solutions that make the elements of gamification and human skills complement each other in the best possible way. The project’s objective was to build a platform using game technologies that bridge isolated young people and work services together for the purpose of helping young people in their job-seeking activities. After extensive research and prototyping, a gamified design for the main application was selected, and serious gaming ideology was chosen as the learning method for a range of training games that the main application would unify together as a platform. We are arguing that gamified job-hunting services have potential to support and activate the unemployed young in job search processes by promoting employment and corresponding to the needs of young adults