How Employers Use Gaming Rewards to Make Us Work Harder

[Remiel]

I stumbled across an interesting article recently: High score, low pay: Why the Gig Economy Loves Gamification.

You may have heard about this, how employers are starting to use the social and psychological "hacks" gleaned from observing human behavior to make us work harder.  In the article, the author describes how Lyft utilizes a highly sophisticated algorithm to generate "surge pricing," as well as other kinds of feedback, in order to--well, at best, inspire; at worst, manipulate--their drivers into generating more revenue for the company.

And this is the thing that is so brilliant and awful about the gamification of Lyft and Uber: it preys on our desire to be of service, to be liked, to be good. On weeks that I am rated highly, I am more motivated to drive. On weeks that I am rated poorly, I am more motivated to drive. It works on me, even though I know better. To date, I have completed more than 2,200 rides.

As a student of psychology and sociology, I find this fascinating.  Does our innate, built-in desire to achieve and maintain a five-star ranking among our social group leave us vulnerable to this kind of manipulation?

[rou]

I don't have many academic things to say on the matter. Gamification in general really interests me because I love gaming, and I want to get things done, and I want to motivate myself. Even trying to motivate myself runs into issues with intrinsic vs extrinsic motivation that give me pause. Like if I repeatedly give myself points to do something, will I stop enjoying the something on its own?

Having people use gamification to modify my behavior really feels like marketing on steroids. I know I fall into the trap sometimes, but sometimes I notice it in time to avoid it.

[Sofia Grace]

From a very young age, we're conditioned to seek approval from our parents - such approval is typically tied to our sense of security not just in ourselves but in our surroundings.  As we get older, we continue to seek that approval from those around us; even moreso in those who received inconsistent attention/approval or disapproval from their parents as they were developing.  It's pretty well understood that humans are very ego-driven; businesses understand this particularly well. 

I believe that humans as a whole are grossly susceptible to manipulation.  What's even more interesting is how susceptible traumatized individuals are to manipulation.  The inherent need to feel liked and to feel a part of a 'pack' is not a coincidence as you see it in animals, as well - they stick together, and the ones who stray from the pack are the ones who die out.  We're conditioned to believe that acceptance is associated with survival.

I'm not sure if this is what you were alluding to with your "five star rating" comment, but the first episode of the third season of Black Mirror shows all of this in action.  Not exactly in relation to a workplace, but from a social standpoint.  It's called "Nosedive".   :-)

[Remiel]

I'm not sure if this is what you were alluding to with your "five star rating" comment, but the first episode of the third season of Black Mirror shows all of this in action.  Not exactly in relation to a workplace, but from a social standpoint.  It's called "Nosedive".   :-)

I'm well familiar with that episode, as it's one of my favorites in a brilliant series.  ;D

[Sofia Grace]

I'm well familiar with that episode, as it's one of my favorites in a brilliant series.  ;D

[Remiel]