Gamified Lessons Boost Food-Poisoning Health Seeking Behavior

Abstract Background This study targeted undergraduates at a public Turkish university, aiming to raise health-seeking behavior (HSB) for food-poisoning problems and to validate an HSB-for-food-poisoning scale. A short, narrative, serious game was utilized as the intervention and as a live data-collection platform. Methods A serverless single-page app (ASP.NET 9/C#) ran on Azure App Service, and every write to Azure Database for PostgreSQL used serializable transactions, preventing duplicates and partial saves. The system streamed pre-/post-test scores and demographics to the database with < 200 ms median latency. 199 students completed demographics, a 27-item pre-test, six interactive vignettes, and the identical post-test. Exploratory factor analysis extracted seven latent dimensions; Kolmogorov-Smirnov tests showed non-normality, so Wilcoxon signed-rank statistics were applied. Results According to explanatory factor analysis results; the game produced significant gains in five dimensions: emergency-symptom recognition (Z = -4.86, r = .35), skepticism toward informal digital advice (Z = -3.67, r = .26), preference for authoritative sources (Z = -7.32, r = .52), evidence-based fluid management (Z = -6.22, r = .44), and appropriate pharmacologic response (Z = -4.18, r = .30), all p < 0.001. Symptom-attribution errors and passive self-care did not change. Statistically significant improvements emerged for five of the seven factors. Backend logs showed full data capture and <0.2s round-trip at peak. Conclusions A 15-minute gamified micro-learning module, delivered via a resilient cloud information system architecture, can generate medium-to-large improvements in five core HSB competencies for food-poisoning problems while ensuring high-integrity, low-latency data handling. Persistent misconceptions may need longitudinal or scaffolded reinforcement; future randomized trials with behavioral end-points are recommended to establish durability and real-world impact. Key messages • This study develops and validates a serious game to promote health-seeking behavior for food poisoning, providing an engaging tool for health education. • This study designs and validates a survey to measure knowledge on health-seeking behavior in food poisoning, supporting future educational and behavioral interventions.