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A serious game-based platform for measuring treatment adherence

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Abstract

Cancer is a devastating disease that remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Children are particularly vulnerable due to their difficulty expressing symptoms and articulating their emotional experiences. The psychological barriers accompanying a cancer diagnosis can affect a child’s adherence to treatment, which is essential for recovery. However, managing these barriers can be challenging for psychologists and psychotherapists. This study proposes a tool to aid psychologists and psychotherapists in observing and measuring treatment adherence in children’s oncology. Unlike traditional observation methods, this tool uses games to engage children more effectively. The GOO platform captures data from game partners to identify hidden and recurring behaviors that may impact treatment adherence. This information helps psychologists and psychotherapists develop more efficient and effective interventions. The GOO platform was tested by ten psychotherapy professionals working with children undergoing oncological treatment, and the results were promising. The platform allowed the researchers to identify emotional fragilities in children using digital games as a plat- form for data analysis. This knowledge can be used to provide more personalized and effective care for these patients. Overall, this study demonstrates the potential of using technology to improve the care of children with cancer. By engaging children with games and using digital tools to capture their emotional responses, psychologists and psychotherapists can gain valuable insights into these patients’ challenges and develop better ways to support them. This paper addresses ten professionals in psychotherapy with children in oncological treatment who tested the platform’s usability. Thus, based on this technological acceptance research, it is possible to identify the emotional fragilities of children using the digital game as a platform for data analysis and thus act more efficiently in caring for the emotions of these patients.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Federal University of Technology of Parana, Cornélio Procópio, Brasil

    Eduardo Filgueiras Damasceno & Armando Paulo da Silva

  2. Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of Parana, Paranavaí, Brazil

    José Dias Barbosa Jr.

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  1. Eduardo Filgueiras Damasceno
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  2. Armando Paulo da Silva
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  3. José Dias Barbosa Jr.
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Correspondence to Eduardo Filgueiras Damasceno.

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Damasceno, E.F., da Silva, A.P. & Barbosa, J.D. A serious game-based platform for measuring treatment adherence. Multimed Tools Appl 83, 12017–12033 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11042-023-15988-5

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