EFFECT OF GAMIFIED LEARNING PROGRAMS ON ENTREPRENEURIAL CREATIVITY OF BUSINESS EDUCATORS IN SOUTH-SOUTH NIGERIAN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS

Abstract

This study examined the effect of gamified learning programs on the entrepreneurial creativity of business educators in South-South Nigerian tertiary institutions. It specifically investigated the influence of gamified learning on idea generation and innovative problem-solving and assessed whether gender and institutional location moderate these effects. Two research questions and two corresponding null hypotheses guided the study. A descriptive survey design was adopted, targeting a population of 521 business educators, from which a sample of 160 educators was drawn using purposive and stratified random sampling. Data collection was conducted over four weeks, combining in-person and online administration, yielding 150 valid responses with a 93.8 percent return rate. A structured questionnaire validated by experts in Business Education, Educational Psychology, and Instructional Technology was used, with reliability established through a test-retest procedure (Spearman correlation = 0.87). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics, including an independent-samples t-test and ANOVA, to test null hypotheses. Findings indicated that gamified learning programs significantly enhance both idea generation and innovative problem-solving among business educators. No significant differences were observed based on gender or institutional location. The study concluded that gamified learning is a highly effective pedagogical strategy for fostering entrepreneurial creativity across diverse educator populations. It was recommended that tertiary institutions integrate gamified learning into curricula, ensure gender-inclusive participation, promote scenario-based problem-solving exercises, and adapt programs to both urban and rural contexts to maximize creative and innovative outcomes