Digital Educational Escape Rooms for Providing Knowledge on Stress Management and Health Promotion for Students—A Rapid Review and Pilot Study

Joanna Albrecht (), Anna Lea Stark-Blomeier, Pascal Schütz, Nina Lenhard, Christoph Dockweiler and Pinar Tokgöz
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Joanna Albrecht: Digital Public Health, Department Digital Health Sciences and Biomedicine, School of Life Sciences, University of Siegen, 57076 Siegen, Germany
Anna Lea Stark-Blomeier: Digital Public Health, Department Digital Health Sciences and Biomedicine, School of Life Sciences, University of Siegen, 57076 Siegen, Germany
Pascal Schütz: Digital Public Health, Department Digital Health Sciences and Biomedicine, School of Life Sciences, University of Siegen, 57076 Siegen, Germany
Nina Lenhard: Digital Public Health, Department Digital Health Sciences and Biomedicine, School of Life Sciences, University of Siegen, 57076 Siegen, Germany
Christoph Dockweiler: Digital Public Health, Department Digital Health Sciences and Biomedicine, School of Life Sciences, University of Siegen, 57076 Siegen, Germany
Pinar Tokgöz: Digital Public Health, Department Digital Health Sciences and Biomedicine, School of Life Sciences, University of Siegen, 57076 Siegen, Germany

IJERPH, 2025, vol. 22, issue 1, 1-24

Abstract: The impact of stress on students’ well-being and academic success is tremendous. This paper addresses the issue of balancing stress with the realm of a digital educational escape room (deER). This article demonstrates how a deER can serve as a means of providing knowledge on stress management and health promotion for university students. The objective was twofold—to explore the state of research regarding deERs in stress management and health promotion for students and to investigate the user experience and acceptance of a deER prototype. The methodology combines a rapid literature review and the conceptual as well as technical development of the deER prototype. Additionally, pilot testing was conducted in alignment with relevant theory. The rapid review included four publications meeting the inclusion criteria. Data for deER prototype testing were collected from students at the University of Siegen (first Bachelor’s and Master’s degree). The pilot study results ( n = 4 participants) indicated that deER education on coping strategies, which incorporates mindfulness exercises, increases productivity and is considered helpful for stress management. This suggests that deERs can provide enjoyable and effective support for students in acquiring personal stress management strategies, potentially enhancing health promotion at universities. However, larger, more diverse studies are needed to fully assess their feasibility and integration into university structures.

Keywords: online escape room; digital game-based learning; health promotion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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