Motivations of Play in MMORPGs

Every day, millions of people interact with each other in online environments known as Massively-Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs). MMORPG players, who on average are 26 years old, typically spend 22 hours a week in these environments. Articulating motivational differences among different users is the precursor to understanding the emergence of more complex behaviors and interactions in these environments, as well as providing a framework to differentiate one user from another. Such a framework provides the foundation to explore whether different sections of the demographic are motivated differently, and whether certain motivations are more highly correlated with usage patterns or in-game preferences or behaviors. The following paper describes a study that used online survey data to create an empirical model of player motivations in MMORPGs and how those resulting motivations correlate with demographic variables and usage patterns. Bartle’s (1996) Player Types is a well-known taxonomy of Multi-User Domain (MUD) users derived from his experiences in creating and managing MUDs. These 4 Types - Achievers, Socializers, Explorers, and Killers - each have different in-game preferences and motivations for using the MUD environment. For example, Explorers are users who are interested in understanding the mechanics and rules of the system as well as mapping out the world, while Socializers are users who enjoy chatting, interacting and role-playing with other users. Bartle’s model provides an important foundation in understanding the motivations of different players, however, it suffers from three significant weaknesses. First, the proposed components of each Type may not be highly correlated. Second, the proposed Types might be overlapping and not truly distinct Types. And finally, the purely theoretical model provides no way to assess users as to what Type they might be. To resolve these weaknesses and build a more solid foundation for understanding player motivations, an empirical analysis was performed. A list of 40 questions that related to player motivations was generated based on Bartle’s Types and anecdotal information from earlier surveys of MMORPG players. Examples of these statements are: How important is it to you to level up as quickly as possible? How much do you enjoy helping other players? How often do you make up stories and histories for your characters? The response option for every question was a 5-point uni-polar construct-specific scale. For example, - Not Important At All - Slightly Important - Moderately Important - Very Important - Tremendously Important Data was then collected from 3000 MMORPG players through online surveys publicized at online portals that catered to MMORPG players from several popular MMORPGs - EverQuest, Dark Age of Camelot, Ultima Online, and Star Wars Galaxies. A factor analysis was then performed on this data to separate the statements into clusters where items within each cluster were as highly correlated as possible while clusters themselves were as uncorrelated as possible. The methodology achieved three goals that overcame the inherent weaknesses of Bartle’s model. First, it ensured that the components of each motivation were indeed correlated. Second, it ensured that different motivations were indeed different. And finally, it would provide a way to assess player motivations. In a sense, this methodology was testing Bartle’s Types for validity and correcting for inherent problems with a purely theoretical model. One important theoretical distinction between Bartle’s types and the factors resulting this study is that Bartle argued that every player was predominantly motivated by one of the four types, whereas the factor model assumes that factors are uncorrelated and therefore it is possible for a player to score high on several factors. This is analogous to contemporary personality assessment tools (such as the Big-5). Just because someone scores high on Extraversion doesn’t mean they can’t also score high on Neuroticism. In other words, in the factor model, scoring high in one factor doesn’t exclude a player from any other factor, whereas Bartle’s model implicitly does so. Bartle’s model tries to categorize players into boxes. The factor model scores players on every factor. A factor analysis using principal components extraction produced 7 factors. All resulting factors had a Cronbach’s alpha of over .70. These factors were: 1) Achievement - The desire to advance the character as quickly as possible, as well as accumulate rare equipment and items, in order to become powerful within the context of the game. 2) Casual Social Interaction (Chat) - An interest in chatting and gossiping with other players. 3) Immersion - The desire to be immersed in a fantasy world and try out new roles and personalities with different characters. 4) Serious Social Interaction (Relationship) - An interest in forming strong, supportive relationships where personal issues can be shared. 5) Competition - The desire to challenge and compete with other players. In more extreme cases, the desire to annoy, manipulate or dominate other players. 6) Escapism - The interest in the virtual world derives from wanting to escape from the real world. 7) Explorer - The desire to explore the game’s mechanics and geography. By calculating the factor scores for the 3000 respondents, the data also allowed an understanding of how these motivations mapped onto gender and age differences as well as hours of play per week. T-tests on the motivation scores grouped by gender showed that male players were significantly more motivated by Competition and Achievement (p’s < .001, r’s = .26 & .19) while female players were significantly more motivated by Casual and Serious Social Interaction (p’s < .001, r’s = .10 & .26). Age was negatively correlated with Achievement (r = -.30), Casual Social Interaction (r = -.10) and Competition (r = -.34). And finally, the number of hours played per week was positively correlated with Achievement (r = .16), Serious Social Interaction (r = .12) and Escapism (r = .12). The empirical model developed in this study provides a solid foundation for future research in MMORPGs by providing a model to understand player motivations, a tool to assess those motivations, and thus also a means to understand usage patterns, in-game behaviors and demographic variables in relation to player motivations

A content analysis of interviews with players of massively multiplayer online role-play games (MMORPGs).

This paper explores the intrapersonal and interpersonal motivations involved in the playing of MMORPGs, and the impacts of gaming on online and offline relationships. Twenty-one participants completed an online synchronous interview in which they discussed their personal experiences of playing MMORPGs. An online survey was then developed to further explore the findings of the interviews and this was completed by 52 participants. A content-analysis of the interview transcripts showed that interpersonal factors (such as social communication and group cohesion) were the strongest motivators for game-playing, supporting previous research [1]. The interview data also showed that there tended to be conflict, rather than integration, between online and offline relationships, however the questionnaire data showed the opposite. This was a small-scale pilot study and a further larger study is planned which will investigate whether Social Identity Theory can be used to explain players’ perceptions of group and personal identity

Mom, Dad It’s Only a Game! Perceived Gambling and Gaming Behaviors among Adolescents and Young Adults: an Exploratory Study

Gambling and gaming are increasingly popular activities among adolescents. Although gambling is illegal in Portugal for youth under the age of 18 years, gambling opportunities are growing, mainly due to similarity between gambling and other technology-based games. Given the relationship between gambling and gaming activities, the paucity of research on gambling and gaming behaviors in Portugal, and the potential negative consequences in the lives of young people, the goal of this study was to explore and compare the perceptions of these two behaviors between Portuguese adolescents and young adults. Results from six focus groups (three with adolescents and three with young adults, comprising 37 participants aged between 13 and 26 years) indicated different perceptions for the two age groups. For adolescents, gaming was associated with addiction whereas for young adults it was perceived a tool for increasing personal and social skills. With regard to gambling, adolescents associated it with luck and financial rewards, whereas young adults perceived it as an activity with more risks than benefits. These results suggest developmental differences that have implications for intervention programs and future research

An exploratory study of the association between online gaming addiction and enjoyment motivations for playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games

Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) are a popular form of entertainment used by millions of gamers worldwide. Potential problems relating to MMORPG play have emerged, particularly in relation to being addicted to playing in such virtual environments. In the present study, factors relating to online gaming addiction and motivations for playing in MMORPGs were examined to establish whether they were associated with addiction. A sample comprised 1167 gamers who were surveyed about their gaming motivations. Latent Class Analysis revealed seven classes of motivations for playing MMORPGs, which comprised: (1) novelty; (2) highly social and discovery-orientated; (3) aggressive, anti-social and non-curious; (4) highly social, competitive; (5) low intensity enjoyment; (6) discovery-orientated; and (7) social classes. Five classes of gaming addiction-related experiences were extracted including: (1) high risk of addiction, (2) time-affected, (3) intermediate risk of addiction, (4) emotional control, and (5) low risk of addiction classes. Gender was a significant predictor of intermediate risk of addiction and emotional control class membership. Membership of the high risk of addiction class was significantly predicted by belonging to a highly social and competitive class, a novelty class, or an aggressive, anti-social, and non-curious class. Implications of these findings for assessment and treatment of MMORPG addiction are discussed

The attitudes, feelings and experiences of online gamers: a qualitative analysis

The playing of massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) is now a highly popular leisure activity. The present study set out to explore the attitudes, experiences, and feelings of online gamers. The study entailed 71 interviews with online gamers (52 males, 19 females) from 11 different countries. Six main themes emerged from the analyses of the interview transcripts: (a) online gaming and integration into day-to-day lives; (b) online gaming, excessive play, and problems; (c) addiction; (d) psychosocial impact of online gaming; (e) online gaming, dissociation, and time loss; and (f) online gaming and the alleviation of negative feelings and mood states. These findings specifically showed how gamers used MMORPGs to alleviate negative feelings and provided detailed descriptions of personal problems that had arisen due to playing MMORPGs. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to previous qualitative and quantitative research in the area

Social interactions in massively multiplayer online role-playing gamers

To date, most research into massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) has examined the demographics of play. This study explored the social interactions that occur both within and outside of MMORPGs. The sample consisted of 912 self-selected MMORPG players from 45 countries. MMORPGs were found to be highly socially interactive environments providing the opportunity to create strong friendships and emotional relationships. The study demonstrated that the social interactions in online gaming form a considerable element in the enjoyment of playing. The study showed MMORPGs can be extremely social games, with high percentages of gamers making life-long friends and partners. It was concluded that virtual gaming may allow players to express themselves in ways they may not feel comfortable doing in real life because of their appearance, gender, sexuality, and/or age. MMORPGs also offer a place where teamwork, encouragement, and fun can be experienced

A cross-genre study of online gaming: player demographics, motivation for play, and social interactions among players

One key limitation with the contemporary online gaming research literature is that much of the published research has tended to examine only one genre of games (i.e., Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games). Three relatively little studied online games are First Person Shooter (FPS) Games, Role Play Games (RPG) and Real Time Strategy (RTS) Games. Therefore, the current study aimed to examine player behaviour and characteristics in these three different online gaming genres. More specifically, the study examined the differences between the three different game genres in terms of: (i) the demographic profile, (ii) the social interactions of players including the number and quality of friends, and how gaming related to real life friendship, and (iii) motivations to play games. The sample comprised 353 self-selected players (156 who played FPS, 119 who played RPG and 78 who played RTS). The RPG genre had the highest percentage of female players. The number of hours played per week varied significantly between the genres. RPG players played significantly longer hours than FPS or RTS players. In relation to playing motivation, achievement levels were highest for the FPS genre with RPG genre having the lowest achievement levels RPG players had the highest immersion levels. RTS players were significantly less likely to report having made friends than players of the other two genres

The mediating effect of gaming motivation between psychiatric symptoms and problematic online gaming: an online survey

Background: The rapid expansion of online video gaming as a leisure time activity has led to the appearance of problematic online gaming (POG). According to the literature, POG is associated with different psychiatric symptoms (eg, depression, anxiety) and with specific gaming motives (ie, escape, achievement). Based on studies of alcohol use that suggest a mediator role of drinking motives between distal influences (eg, trauma symptoms) and drinking problems, this study examined the assumption that there is an indirect link between psychiatric distress and POG via the mediation of gaming motives. Furthermore, it was also assumed that there was a moderator effect of gender and game type preference based on the important role gender plays in POG and the structural differences between different game types

Self-discrepancy and MMORPGs: testing the moderating effects of avatar identification and pathological gaming in world of warcraft

Previous research has shown that MMORPG players create avatars that are considered to possess more ideal personality traits than their actual selves. More specifically, Bessière, Seay and Kiesler (2007) have demonstrated that for the personality traits conscientiousness, extraversion and neuroticism, the mean discrepancies between gamers' ideal self and avatar are significantly smaller than those between the gamers' ideal and actual self. These findings are automatically attributed to the assumption that gamers use their avatars to alleviate self-discrepancy. This line of reasoning is supported by a recent theoretical account by Klimmt, Hefner and Vorder (2009). They argue that video games enable an experiential merger of the player with their game avatar, which affords a temporary reduction of the psychological distress that is associated with a discrepancy between the self and the ideal self. Unfortunately, Bessière et al.'s (2007) study fails to provide definitive evidence for this assumption. Whereas the smaller distance between avatar and ideal self indicates that players see their avatar as more ideal, this does not mean that they identify with their avatar and use it to temporarily relieve self-discrepancy. In fact, there are several alternative explanations. First of all, fantasy game characters by default possess characteristics that can be deemed more ideal. Moreover, gamers may assemble an avatar with ideal characteristics to facilitate their game play rather than because they relate these characteristics to themselves. Consequently, a meaningful association, i.e. identification, between WoW players and their avatars is a prerequisite for supporting the self-discrepancy thesis. Hence our first hypothesis posits that (H1) in comparison to gamers with a low level of avatar identification, gamers with a high level of avatar identification perceive the distance between their ideal self and avatar as smaller than the distance between their ideal self and actual self. Secondly, we explore the possibility that pathological gaming can be related to a desire to reduce self-discrepancy by evaluating whether gamers with a tendency towards pathological gaming have a stronger desire to reduce self-discrepancy. Research has indicated that the activity of advancing an avatar, making it as ideal as possible, requires a significant amount of commitment and thus can be expected to be a factor in explaining pathological gaming (Ducheneaut, Yee, Nickell, & Moore, 2006; Hsu, Wen, & Wu, 2009). Withal, previous studies have confirmed the relation between pathological gaming and lower levels of psychological well-being (Lemmens, Valkenburg, & Peter, 2009; Lo, Wang, & Fang, 2005). Given these findings, we propose a second hypothesis (H2), stating that in comparison to gamers with a weak tendency towards pathological gaming, gamers with a strong tendency towards it perceive the distance between their ideal self and avatar as smaller than the distance between their ideal and actual self. Yet, the question arises whether the experience of a temporary reduction of self-discrepancy through gaming is a factor in explaining the process of pathological gaming. Perhaps gamers use their avatars to make up for their perceived shortcomings and to experience a more idealized self. On the other hand, pathological gamers might be caught up in the game, advancing their character, without the player identifying with it and thus without the mechanism of self-discrepancy reduction playing a role. However, previous research by Smahel, Blinka and Ledabyl (2008) found a small correlation between ad hoc measures of identification and pathological gaming. Therefore, our third and final hypothesis states that (H3) in comparison to other gamers, gamers with high scores for both pathological gaming and identification perceive the distance between their ideal self and avatar as smaller than the distance between their ideal self and actual self. The present research draws on a sample of 304 WoW players, gathered through an online survey (Mage = 24.54, SD = 13.91, 84% male). The survey contained BFI personality measures of: (a) gamers' actual self, (b) gamers' ideal self and (c) main avatar (John & Srivastava, 2008). Furthermore, measures of avatar identification (Van Looy, Courtois, & De Vocht, 2010) and pathological gaming (Lemmens, et al., 2009) were included. These two measures' scores were split in half, using the median as a cut-off point to divide into high and low levels. Mixed model analysis of variances was used to test for the proposed hypotheses. First of all, the results indicate that players with a high avatar identification have a character that is closer to their ideal self for conscientiousness, neuroticism, openness and extraversion than those who score low for avatar identification. Except for openness, the ideal self - avatar discrepancies are consistently smaller than the ideal self - actual self discrepancies. As such, evidence is found for the first hypothesis. The second hypothesis, predicting a moderating effect of pathological gaming, is confirmed for neuroticism, openness and extraversion. Except for openness, it shows that for gamers with high pathological gaming scores demonstrate a larger distance between the self and actual self and a smaller distance between the avatar and the ideal self. Finally, the third hypothesis is confirmed for neuroticism and openness. It shows that gamers who combine a high score for pathological gaming with a high degree identification have much smaller discrepancies between their ideal self and avatar than between their ideal self and actual self. As such, these findings provide direct evidence for the self-discrepancy hypothesis proposed by Klimmt, Heffner and Vorderer. By implementing a direct measure of identification into Bessière, Kiesler and Seay's design, we were able to rule out the possibility that gamers do not meaningfully associate themselves with their avatar and just see it as more ideal because the game depicts a more ideal world or because creating a more ideal avatar is necessary for being successful in the game. As such, it is effectively shown that WoW players maintain a meaningful relationship with their avatar, which in turn provides further evidence for the self-discrepancy hypothesis in relation to the playing of MMORPGs. Finally, based on the idea that pathological gaming could be accompanied by a stronger desire to reduce self-discrepancy and thus alleviate psychological tension, we compared pathological gaming scores and discrepancies. Our findings indicate that WoW players with a tendency towards pathological gaming create and identify with avatars that are much more emotionally stable than their actual selves. In other words, they create an avatar that is more ideal on the dimension of neuroticism and then identify with it more strongly. References: Bessière, K., Seay, F., & Kiesler, S. (2007). The Ideal Elf: Identity Exploration in World of Warcraft. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 10(4), 530-535. Ducheneaut, N., Yee, N., Nickell, E., & Moore, R. J. (2006). Building an MMO with Mass Appeal: A look at gameplay in World of Warcraft. Games and Culture, 1(4), 281-317. Hsu, S. H., Wen, M. H., & Wu, M. C. (2009). Exploring user experiences as predictors of MMORPG addiction. Computers & Education, 53(3), 990-999. John, O. P., & Srivastava, S. (2008). The Big Five Trait Taxonomy: History, Measurement, and Theoretical Perspectives. In J. O.P., R. W. Robins & L. A. Pervin (Eds.), Handbook of Personality (pp. 102-139). New York: Guilford Press. Klimmt, C., Hefner, D., & Vorderer, P. (2009). The Video Game Experience as "True" Identification: A Theory of Enjoyable Alternations of Players' Self-Perception. Communication Theory, 19(4). Lemmens, J. S., Valkenburg, P. M., & Peter, J. (2009). Development and Validation of a Game Addiction Scale for Adolescents. Media Psychology, 12(1), 77-95. Lo, S. K., Wang, C. C., & Fang, W. (2005). Physical Interpersonal Relationships and Social Anxiety among Online Game Players. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 8(1), 15-20. Smahel, D., Blinka, L., & Ledabyl, O. (2008). Playing MMORPGs: Connections between Addiction and Identifying with a Character. Cyberpsychology & Behavior, 11(6), 715-718. Van Looy, J., Courtois, C., & De Vocht, M. (2010). Player Identification in Online Games: Validation of a Scale for Measuring Identification in MMORPGs. Paper presented at the Fun & Games, Leuven, Belgium

Gender swapping and socialising in cyberspace: an exploratory study

Massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) are one of the most interesting innovations in the area of online computer gaming. Given the relative lack of research in the area, the main aims of the study were to examine (a) the impact of online gaming (e.g., typical playing behavior) in the lives of online gamers, (b) the effect of online socializing in the lives of gamers, and (c) why people engage in gender swapping. A self-selecting sample of 119 online gamers ranging from 18 to 69 years (M = 28.5 years) completed a questionnaire. The results showed that just over one in five gamers (21%) said they preferred socializing online to offline. Significantly more male gamers than female gamers said that they found it easier to converse online than offline. It was also found that 57% of gamers had engaged in gender swapping, and it is suggested that the online female persona has a number of positive social attributes in a male-oriented environment