Research on the Influence of Conscious and Subconscious Goals on Higher-Order Learning in Gamification in Higher Education

Goal setting is an inherent feature of gamification. While existing studies have insufficiently addressed the role of goal-setting mechanisms in gamification teaching, a critical gap remains regarding subconscious goal-setting. Focused on higher education, this study explores the impact of gamification on learning outcomes related to higher-order thinking skills (HOTS) and conducts a field experiment with 100 students in an ERPsim game to examine how conscious and subconscious goal setting influences HOTS in such contexts. Drawing on Goal Setting Theory and the subconscious automaticity model, a theoretical model was constructed. The results indicate that conscious and subconscious goal setting exert distinct effects on students' HOTS in real gamification classroom settings. Additionally, an interaction effect was identified between these two goal types: their positive influence on knowledge depth was attenuated when both types of goals were set simultaneously. This study confirms that both conscious and subconscious goal setting in gamification in higher education can effectively enhance HOTS achievement. These findings enrich and complement gamification theory, while providing practical guidance for instructors to design gamification that improve participants' higher-order thinking skills.