Literature Review

  1. Ten Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles with their Abstracts in APA Format

Batada A, Thomas AE, Holtz D. (2022). Utilizing a Data-to-Action Approach to Cultivate Policy Research and Advocacy Skills in Community-Engaged Health Promotion Courses. Pedagogy in Health Promotion, 8(3):216-223. doi:10.1177/23733799211035812

This study presents the “data-to-action” approach in health promotion courses, which engages students in real-world data collection and policy advocacy initiatives. Findings indicate that students gained research, analytical, and advocacy skills, particularly in addressing social determinants of health, such as housing insecurity and access to essential services​.

Erreygers, S., Pabian, S., & Vandebosch, H. (2019). Development and validation of a multidimensional instrument to measure adolescents’ online prosocial behavior. Computers in Human Behavior, 93, 238-247. https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docman/irua/7c27a2/148214_2019_07_31.pdf

The authors developed the Online Prosocial Behavior Scale to measure adolescents’ online prosocial actions. The scale demonstrated strong reliability and validity, showing that online prosocial behavior is positively associated with offline prosocial tendencies but may also overlap with certain forms of online antisocial behaviors​.

Gonzalez-Mohino, M., Rodriguez-Domenech, M. A., Callejas-Albiñana, A. I., & Castillo-Canalejo, A. (2023). Empowering critical thinking: The role of digital tools in citizen participation. Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 12(2). https://doi.org/10.7821/naer.2023.7.1385

This article highlights the role of digital tools in fostering critical thinking and civic engagement. The findings suggest that digital learning environments can transform learners into engaged citizens with improved participatory values and critical reasoning.

Hadjipanayi, C., Christofi, M., Banakou, D. et al. (2024). Cultivating empathy through narratives in virtual reality: a review. Pers Ubiquit Comput 28, 507–519. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00779-024-01812-w

This review investigates how virtual reality narratives can cultivate empathy, focusing on educational, personal, and historical stories. The study concludes that VR can increase users’ perspective-taking abilities, though more research is needed on its long-term effects.

Kidd, S.A. Youth Homelessness and Social Stigma. Journal of Youth Adolescence 36, 291–299 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9100-3

This research examines the impact of social stigma on homeless youth, identifying correlations between perceived stigma and mental health challenges, such as depression and low self-esteem. The study emphasizes the importance of reducing stigma to improve support systems for this vulnerable population​.

Mariani, I. and Ciancia, M. (2023), Design for Narrative Change. A Pedagogical Model for Interactive Digital Narratives. Int J Art Des Educ, 42: 384-401. https://doi.org/10.1111/jade.12468

The authors propose a pedagogical model for using interactive digital narratives (IDNs) to foster critical reflection and challenge societal narratives. Findings indicate that well-designed IDNs can enhance participants’ understanding of complex social issues and promote prosocial thinking​.

Mekler, E., Frasseck, L., Forde, S., Opwis, K., Iten, G., & Steinemann, S. (2017). Interactive Narratives Affecting Social Change: A Closer Look at the Relationship Between Interactivity and Prosocial Behavior. Journal of Media Psychology: Theories, Methods, and Applications, 29(1), 54–66. https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-1105/a000211

This study explores the relationship between interactivity and prosocial behavior in narrative-driven games. Results show that interactive experiences can enhance narrative engagement and increase users’ prosocial behaviors, such as donating to charity, depending on levels of narrative appreciation and user agency.

Myers, C., Piccolo, L., & Collins, T. (2023). Democratising Digital Educational Game Design for Social Change. Journal of Learning for Development, 10(1), 55–74. https://doi.org/10.56059/jl4d.v10i1.714

This research focuses on democratizing the design of educational games for social change, emphasizing the inclusion of diverse voices in the design process. The findings highlight that participatory design approaches can increase the relevance and impact of educational games in promoting social justice​.

Steinemann, S. T., Iten, G. H., Opwis, K., Forde, S. M., Frascek, L., & Mekler, E. D. (2017). Interactive narratives affecting social change: A closer look at the relationship between interactivity and prosocial behavior. Journal of Media Psychology. Steinemann, S. T., Iten, G. H., Opwis, K., Forde, S. F., Frasseck, L., & Mekler, E. D. (2017). Journal of Media Psychology: Theories, Methods, and Applications, 29(1), 54–66. https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-1105/a000211

This article discusses the importance of interactivity in fostering narrative engagement and behavioral changes. The study found that interactive stories that encourage user decisions lead to higher levels of responsibility and appreciation, ultimately influencing prosocial actions​.

Wu E, Villani J, Davis A, Fareed N, Harris DR, Huerta TR, LaRochelle MR, Miller CC, Oga EA. (2020).Community dashboards to support data-informed decision-making in the HEALing communities study. Drug Alcohol Depend. 217:108331. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108331. Epub 2020 Oct 1. PMID: 33070058; PMCID: PMC7528750

This study focuses on the implementation of community dashboards to support data-informed decision-making in public health interventions. The findings indicate that interactive dashboards enhance community engagement, facilitate resource allocation, and help stakeholders monitor public health outcomes effectively.


2. Current State of Knowledge

The following review analyzes key findings from selected research articles related to interactive narratives, civic engagement, and educational tools to address social challenges, particularly houselessness.

  1. Batada et al. (2022)
    This study highlights the “data-to-action” approach in health promotion courses, engaging students in collecting and analyzing data for policy advocacy. Key outcomes include increased familiarity with local communities and professional research skills, enabling participants to advocate for resource reallocation efforts targeting issues such as houselessness​.
  2. Erreygers et al. (2019)
    This research introduces the Online Prosocial Behavior Scale to measure adolescents’ positive online interactions, revealing that digital spaces can promote both prosocial and antisocial behaviors. The study identifies a need for more nuanced tools to assess online civic behaviors among youth​.
  3. Mariani & Ciancia (2023)
    This article proposes a pedagogical framework for designing Interactive Digital Narratives (IDNs) to challenge dominant societal narratives and foster critical reflection. It emphasizes using narratives for social change in educational contexts by placing participants in scenarios that prompt new perspectives​.
  4. Hadjipanayi et al. (2024)
    This systematic review explores virtual reality narratives’ role in empathy-building. Findings indicate that interactive and immersive stories enhance users’ perspective-taking, though the effect on long-term behavioral change remains under-studied​.
  5. Steinemann et al. (2017)
    A study on interactive narratives’ potential for prosocial behavior, comparing interactive and non-interactive conditions. The findings reveal that interactive media fostering user agency enhances narrative appreciation, contributing to attitudinal shifts and increased prosocial behaviors, such as charitable donations​.

3. Synthesis of Common Trends and Contrasting Findings

A common thread across these studies is the emphasis on interactive digital tools as a means to foster empathy, critical thinking, and prosocial behavior. Batada et al. (2022) and Mariani & Ciancia (2023) align on the transformative potential of engaging narratives, advocating for designs that connect learners with real-world social issues through data-driven interventions. Similarly, Hadjipanayi et al. (2024) and Steinemann et al. (2017) underscore the power of interactivity in cultivating empathy and social responsibility, although Steinemann’s results question the consistency of such behavioral impacts.

A notable contrast is found between Erreygers et al. (2019) and Hadjipanayi et al. (2024). The former identifies digital prosocial actions as influenced by context-dependent motivations, sometimes converging with antisocial tendencies. In contrast, Hadjipanayi et al. (2024) focuses on immersive virtual reality as a direct empathy tool, emphasizing embodiment and narrative role-playing as pathways to prosocial outcomes.

4. Identified Knowledge Gaps

The review highlights several gaps:

  • Longitudinal Studies: Few studies provide longitudinal data on whether narrative-driven interventions yield sustained prosocial behavior beyond immediate interactions.
  • Diverse User Perspectives: There is limited exploration of how diverse user demographics (e.g., age, cultural background) affect engagement with interactive narratives.
  • Outcome Metrics for Empathy and Agency: There remains a lack of consistent, validated metrics to measure empathy and civic engagement within educational game prototypes like Rebuilding Lives.
  • Youth Engagement in Policy Advocacy: While Batada et al. (2022) discuss community-level advocacy, further research is needed to understand how youth-targeted narratives empower systemic change.

These insights will inform the development of the Rebuilding Lives game to include more robust evaluation methods, fostering evidence-based improvements in promoting empathy and civic engagement among young adults and teens.