Be Aware of the Digital Badge

“The honors and rewards fall to those who show their good qualities in action.” – Aristotle

Providing proof of accomplishments has a long history. Humans created systems to legitimize everything from land ownership, education status, and awards. Institutions award badges, trophies, medals, certificates and/or a plethora of other physical items. It makes sense this form of status demonstration would transfer over to video games and social media. A predictable approach, but one which begs the question: Are all accomplishments created equally?

The first university diploma, which translates from Greek to “double folded paper”, was issued in 1642¹. Admittedly, this is relatively young when considering the oldest legal document is The Code of Ur-Nammu, circa 2100 to 2050 BCE². There are valid legal reasons for proof to exist. Deeds prove you own your home. Diplomas signify you graduated from college or university. A trophy is physical proof of accomplishment from an organization. There are social benefits as well, studies show social awards and recognition can significantly increase intrinsic motivation, performance, and retention rates³.

Human nature is to want recognition and appreciation. This does not always have to be as complex as an award or document, 85% of professionals want to hear “thank you” in day-to-day interactions⁴. Recognition and proof of achievement is powerful enough to motivate people to push through wanting to quit⁵. Unfortunately, social media, video games, and apps have also seen this research. Digital badges, an approach often referred to as ’gamification’, hit the same psychological receptors as physical proof of accomplishments and increase user interaction⁶. Hours of scrolling provide a badge award which stimulates even more hours of scrolling.

Digital badges are not inherently evil. As pointed out above, humans crave recognition. The goal is to be aware of the effects. When you get that badge, what value did it bring to your life? Did it take you years of hard work or was it provided after hours of staring at a glowing screen? Is the weight of a social media badge the same as the ‘A’ you received on the test or the paperwork proving you started your own business? As with everything, the idea is an understanding and a balance between the analog and the digital. Bask in your recognitions, but be aware of what exactly you’re basking in.

Action: Reflect, what recognition(s) have you received recently? Is that recognition in line with your goals?

Further Reading:

1. Graduation Diploma History
2. The Ur-Nammu Law Code, the Oldest Known Legal Code
3. Effort for Payment: A Tale of Two Markets
4. It’s time to rethink your employee recognition strategy
5. The impact of student recognition of excellence to student outcome in a competency-based educational model
6. Badges in Social Media: A Social Psychological Perspective