Investigate!: Developing professional scepticism through gamification in a forensic accounting module

Professional scepticism is essential in accounting practice but remains difficult to develop through traditional lecture-based instruction. This study examines how a single, gamified investigative simulation, PwC's Investigate!, develops professional scepticism as an enacted capability within a final-year forensic accounting module. Drawing on Experiential Learning Theory, complemented by Self-Determination Theory, Flow Theory and TPACK, the study advances a conceptual model linking experiential, motivational and technological conditions to scepticism outcomes. Reflective commentaries from 104 students across nine cohorts (2014/15–2022/23) were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. Findings indicate consistent outcomes across cohorts: students enacted sceptical judgement by questioning evidence, recognising bias, resisting premature conclusions and justifying decisions collaboratively under time pressure. Three design principles emerge: authentic uncertainty must be embedded so that judgement is required rather than optional; collaborative accountability should normalise sceptical challenge and reflective assessment should consolidate metacognition and professional identity. The study challenges the assumption that developing professional scepticism requires extended or resource-intensive intervention, demonstrating that a single, well-designed experiential activity reliably produces higher-order professional capabilities and broader employability outcomes, offering a practical and scalable model for educators seeking to address the graduate expectation–performance gap. The study shows how the purposeful alignment of forensic content, experiential pedagogy and technology operationalises the higher-order judgement capabilities that contemporary employers, professional bodies and curriculum benchmarks identify as central to excellent accounting education.