I love how this question was worded. Notice it’s not asking the direct link between LEARNING and gamification. It’s asking about the link between ENGAGEMENT and gamification. Engagement itself does not mean necessarily more effective learning, but if your goal is engagement, yes you can use gamification. Just make sure you engage people to do what DOES impact learning and not just random clicks.

“People get engaged when their mind is challenged, not when they have to move their mouse.”

A recent meta analysis (study of several studies) show that gamification resulted in online learning engagement. Although, the effect faded over time. However, this is exactly the trap L&D professionals fall often: not all “gamifications” are equal, AND engagement may not lead directly to better learning outcomes.

However, boredom does not lead to better outcomes either. In real life (outside the theoretical bubbles), there’s a scale between doing nothing and doing the most perfect thing. So, if you can just do something, it’s still better than nothing. But that’s just my philosophy.

If you really want to improve engagement, start with making the courses relevant. Focus on actions and decisions. Challenge learners, provide feedback. That’s how you get to motivation.