Trends and Applications of Gamification in E-Commerce: A Systematic Literature Review

Background: Gamification is a trend that has emerged with the growth of e-commerce. Given the wide range of human characteristics, determining which gamification elements perform well and what impact those gamification elements have can be challenging. Objective: This study aims to conduct a systematic literature review to broadly review the impact that can be caused by the application of gamification elements in e-commerce. This study also attempts to identify the current trends in using gamification elements. Methods: This study was carried out based on the Kitchenham approach and analyzes 25 research papers extracted from a total of 550 papers. The articles were gathered from ACM, Emerald, ScienceDirect, and Scopus and were published between 2016 and 2021. Results: This study found that the trend of research in the field of gamification in e-commerce continues to grow every year. Also, this study found that the most frequently used gamification elements are achievement-oriented (such as rewards, points, badges, and leaderboards). Meanwhile, immersion-related gamification elements (such as avatars, fantasy, etc.) are emerging as a new trend for new gamification elements to be incorporated in e-commerce. This study also found three major themes, namely consumer loyalty, consumer engagement, and user behavior, as a result of the application of gamification in e-commerce. Conclusion: This study helps to improve knowledge of various gamification elements, trends, and impacts on e-commerce. Future studies need to examine the challenges that may arise in the application of gamification elements to the three major themes found in this study and find potential solutions to overcome them.