Bridging the Industry Readiness Gap in Public Relations Education: Gamification Perceptions among Students, Educators, and Practitioners in Malaysia and Bangladesh

Gamification's application to public relations (PR) education in developing-country contexts remains largely undocumented in the existing literature. This qualitative study examines how PR students, educators, and industry practitioners in Malaysia and Bangladesh perceive the industry readiness gap in PR education and the potential of gamified simulation to address it. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with twenty-five participants across three stakeholder groups, thematic analysis following the Atlas.ti protocol produced four code groups and three overarching themes: the indwelling deficit, describing how current PR education fails to support professional identity formation; the deliberate practice dilemma, capturing tension between meaningful skill development and reward-seeking behaviour; and adoption ambivalence, reflecting the gap between positive attitudes toward gamification and actual uptake constrained by infrastructure, culture, and assessment concerns. Findings indicate that narrative-driven, scenario-based gamification aligned with real PR crises holds significantly greater perceived value than generic points, badges, and leaderboard mechanics. Drawing on Situated Learning Theory, Self-Determination Theory, and the Technology Acceptance Model as a connected explanatory sequence, the study's principal theoretical contribution is to extend the Technology Acceptance Model beyond its individual-level focus: adoption barriers identified here operate at infrastructural and culturally semiotic levels that condition perceived usefulness and ease of use before individual attitudes form. The study contributes practically by identifying design priorities for gamified PR learning platforms in the region, and discusses implications for curriculum policy and educational equity in both national contexts.

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public relations education; gamification; industry readiness; Situated Learning Theory; Self-Determination Theory

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Bridging the Industry Readiness Gap in Public Relations Education: Gamification Perceptions among Students, Educators, and Practitioners in Malaysia and Bangladesh

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