Gamificação no Ensino à luz da Teoria da Autodeterminação: uma análise textual das implicações para motivação, engajamento e aprendizagem 

Abstract

This study analyzed, in light of Self-Determination Theory, the contributions of gamification to motivation, engagement, and learning in education. It is a qualitative literature review based on studies published between 2015 and 2025 and retrieved from Google Scholar and the Brazilian Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations. After applying the selection criteria, the corpus comprised four articles and three academic works, which were subjected to textual analysis using IRaMuTeQ software through Descending Hierarchical Classification. The results indicate that gamification, when pedagogically planned, promotes autonomy, perceived competence, relatedness, persistence in the face of challenges, and content retention, thereby strengthening intrinsic motivation and student agency. It is concluded that its effectiveness depends on the integration of pedagogical design, structured feedback, and appropriate institutional conditions, making it a promising strategy for contemporary educational contexts.