NAME: Elena Cadel
NATIONALITY: Italian
PROJECT: Assessment and stimulation of healthy and sustainable eating behaviors: A Serious Games project to support appropriate food choices
Research within the field of psychology shows that young people are better motivated by meaningful learning activities, compared to top-down approaches of disseminating information. Elena Cadel seeks to use e-gaming technology in order to promote healthier food habits in young people.
Cadel proposes the use of Serious Games (SGs)—digital games designed for goals rather than pure entertainment—to exploit the potential of emotional involvement for the purpose of learning. SGs are based on Positive Technology (PT), an applied science for improving the quality of personal experience.
The SGs aim to promote a more traditional Mediterranean/Italian diet, with a reduction in animal protein and fat intake. While dietary guidelines and cooking games are easily available online, this project would combine them into a new platform to monitor and manage food intake.
The platform would consist of two main areas of focus. The Assessment Area would manage personal nutrition profiles based on food intake. The Cooking Area would train users on cooking skills, allowing them to advance as they master new skills and knowledge.
This proposed game is a bottom-up approach, which aims to engage the attention of young people in order to effectively communicate nutrition information.
