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How nostalgic feelings impact Pokémon Go players – integrating childhood brand nostalgia into the technology acceptance theory
Abstract
The augmented reality smartphone game Pokémon Go is one of the biggest commercial successes in the last years, posing the question concerning the factors contributing to the game’s success. An apparent distinction to other games is the strong brand Pokémon. We derive a research model based on the established theory of technology acceptance, which includes an established construct for nostalgic feelings – childhood brand nostalgia – and theorise on how it is related to beliefs about technology characteristics and the intention to play the game. For this purpose, we adapt one of the most prominent technology acceptance models for the consumer context and for hedonic information systems, the UTAUT2 model. Based on our model, we conduct a study with 418 active German players aged between 18 and 35. Our results indicate that the effect of childhood brand nostalgia on behavioural intention is fully mediated by the belief constructs. Thus, nostalgic feelings about Pokémon influence the intention of users through altering beliefs concerning Pokémon. We include nostalgic feelings in a technology acceptance model for the first time, therefore contributing to the theoretical advance in the IS domain. The results can be used to enhance the technology acceptance of newly designed products.
... In that visual context, [Linehan and Kirman 2017] highlights nostalgia -a mental state activated by personal elements experienced in the past -plays a substantial role in user experience [Harborth and Pape 2020]. They argue Pokémon Go and Ingress, both developed by Niantic, are similar in design but different in exploring or not a branding that causes nostalgia, which consequently affects the extent of their success. ...
... Specifically, Pokémon 1 is a branding involving Anime, Video Games, and Card Games, among others, which has been successful for decades. Note that nostalgia relates to personal elements experienced in the past [Harborth and Pape 2020]. Accordingly, it is reasonable to assume that Pokémon Go's huge success, compared to Ingress, relates to the nostalgic experience its Pokémon layer offers to users [Harborth and Pape 2020]. ...
... Note that nostalgia relates to personal elements experienced in the past [Harborth and Pape 2020]. Accordingly, it is reasonable to assume that Pokémon Go's huge success, compared to Ingress, relates to the nostalgic experience its Pokémon layer offers to users [Harborth and Pape 2020]. Thereby, as discussed by [Linehan and Kirman 2017], such a nostalgic effect might similarly contribute to user experience and engagement with interactive systems. ...
Gamified learning has the potential to improve learning outcomes, but most strategies are focused on using Points-Badges-Leaderboards (PBL) while neglecting other game elements. Drawing upon research discussing nos-talgia's potential to improve user experience and engagement, we hypothesized affective memory could aid in designing gamification's visual aesthetics. To start testing that hypothesis, we conducted a moderated usability study aiming to understand how Pokémon-based gamification compares to a trophy-based approach. Nine undergraduate students used two versions of a gamified quiz prototype (Pokémon and trophy-based) to complete multiple-choice items, then discussed their experiences in a semi-structured interview. Our findings suggest affective memory plays a significant role in gamified learning and indicate Pokémon-based gamification might maximize intrinsic motivation. Thus, informing practitioners that gamification targeting affective memory can enhance learning by increasing engagement and intrinsic motivation, and calling researchers to further investigate affective memory and other brands in gamifi-cation research.
... Originally, the construct performance expectancy in its organizational context assessed the extent to which individuals and users believe that a new software or system will help them to reach their goals and improve productivity (Venkatesh et al., 2003). Later, the item was adapted towards the consumer technology acceptance and use context (Harborth and Pape, 2020;Venkatesh et al., 2012) and the definition of performance expectancy changed to the degree to which using the technology will provide benefits to the individual in completing his tasks (Venkatesh et al., 2012). Venkatesh et al. (2003) find that performance expectancy is the strongest predictor of behavioral intention. ...
... Effort expectancy describes how easy it is for individuals to use a technology (Venkatesh et al., 2012). Here, ease of use is associated with an increase in adoption of a technology (Harborth and Pape, 2020;Venkatesh et al., 2012). As the usage of the digital euro will require a certain level of knowledge and skill, effort expectancy is likely a main determinant for its adoption (Alalwan et al., 2017). ...
... To measure privacy concerns regarding the digital euro, we adapted the internet privacy concerns construct from (Dinev and Hart, 2004). As the study was conducted on a German panel, items were translated into German or were adapted from already validated translations from prior studies (Harborth and Pape, 2020). All items are reflective and measured on a 7-point Likert scale. ...
Worldwide, central banks are working on the introduction of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) as a new form of currency for digital transactions in response to cryptocurrencies and a decrease in cash payments. We investigate usage intention in specific retail CBDC, the digital euro, for the first time, and study the topic from a user-centric perspective. The UTAUT model extended with additional factors identified to be of importance for individuals in digital payment research – trust dimensions and privacy concerns – was used. Our work accounts for 69.2% of the variance in a user's intention to adopt the digital euro in our survey with 303 respondents. The findings suggest that strategic decision-maker should focus on the creation of trust in the currency, underlying technology and the central bank. The digital euro's performance as a payment solution is found to be the most important factor for behavioral intention to use.
... Originally, the construct performance expectancy in its organizational context assessed the extent to which individuals and users believe that a new software or system will help them to reach their goals and improve productivity (Venkatesh et al., 2003). Later, the item was adapted towards the consumer technology acceptance and use context (Harborth and Pape, 2020;Venkatesh et al., 2012) and the definition of performance expectancy changed to the degree to which using the technology will provide benefits to the individual in completing his tasks (Venkatesh et al., 2012). Venkatesh et al. (2003) find that performance expectancy is the strongest predictor of behavioral intention. ...
... Effort expectancy describes how easy it is for individuals to use a technology (Venkatesh et al., 2012). Here, ease of use is associated with an increase in adoption of a technology (Harborth and Pape, 2020;Venkatesh et al., 2012). As the usage of the digital euro will require a certain level of knowledge and skill, effort expectancy is likely a main determinant for its adoption (Alalwan et al., 2017). ...
... To measure privacy concerns regarding the digital euro, we adapted the internet privacy concerns construct from (Dinev and Hart, 2004). As the study was conducted on a German panel, items were translated into German or were adapted from already validated translations from prior studies (Harborth and Pape, 2020). All items are reflective and measured on a 7-point Likert scale. ...
Worldwide, central banks are working on the introduction of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) as a new form of currency for digital transactions in response to cryptocurrencies and a decrease in cash payments. We investigate usage intention in specific retail CBDC, the digital euro, for the first time, and study the topic from a user-centric perspective. The UTAUT model extended with additional factors identified to be of importance for individuals in digital payment research-trust dimensions and privacy concerns-was used. Our work accounts for 69.2% of the variance in a user's intention to adopt the digital euro in our survey with 303 respondents. The findings suggest that strategic decision-maker should focus on the creation of trust in the currency, underlying technology and the central bank. The digital euro's performance as a payment solution is found to be the most important factor for behavioral intention to use.
... In restaurants, where customers are more drawn to nostalgic-themed establishments, nostalgia marketing techniques have proven to be effective (Wen et al., 2019). With the debut of Pokémon Go, several studies have shown that nostalgic emotion is an important factor in recruiting players in the gaming industry (Ghazali et al., 2019;Harborth & Pape, 2019). As a result, nostalgia marketing can be a great way to bring in new customers in the automobile industry. ...
... Nostalgia plays an important role in luring gamers to games like Pokémon Go. The presence of nostalgia influenced the way the players behaved (Ghazali et al., 2019;Harborth & Pape, 2019). Instead of being a clear idea, ambivalent nostalgia has remained a fuzzy one. ...
... Studies have shown that people's nostalgic feelings about the past cause them to get emotionally attached to a product. Their key reason is that nostalgia makes them remember happy times from the past (Ghazali et al., 2019;Harborth & Pape, 2019;Kessous, 2015). The desire to own an automobile is being fueled by people's favorable attitudes and emotional attachments to them. ...
Emotions are considered as the real inner perception of a person. Emotions can never be ignored or completely eliminated from one’s life. The point of emotion like nostalgia has immense importance in our social life and the concept of nostalgia has a great shift from organizational environment to expanding marketing world. This research aimed to determine the purchase intention as outcome of nostalgic emotions of customers. This study finds the mediating effect of attachment and attitude in between nostalgic emotions and purchase intention. The data for this research was collected from the customers of Toyota and Honda motors located in two metropolitan cities of Pakistan (i.e Karachi and Lahore). The research has used non-probability sampling technique and cross-sectional research design was adopted. Furthermore, the adopted and modified questionnaire was used as survey instrument. The statistical outcomes were drawn from robust statistical technique, covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM). The results show that nostalgic emotion has positive and significant effect on purchase intention of customers. Moreover, mediating effect of attitude and attachment was confirmed in between nostalgic emotion and purchase intention. Consequently, this study confirmed that organizations should work on customer attitude and attachment which are the possible causes of nostalgic emotion, it may sufficiently increases customers’ purchase intention.
... Imagination can help ponder meaning-of-life questions by enabling exploration of the purpose of living through the playing experience, resulting in eudaimonic gratification (Oliver et al., 2016;Weise, 2004). Imagination is also connected to social processes and allows individuals to effortlessly cooperate with even those unfamiliar to them through shared fiction (Harari, 2014). To capture these aspects in AR games, in this study, we investigate how the games can create meaning for players. ...
... The ability to imagine shared fictional worlds is unique to our species (Harari, 2014). We can discuss, defend and criticise a fictional universe that only exists in stories and our shared imagination. ...
... Together, these studies speak of social networking's complexity in LARGs, being a mix of technology-assisted face-to-face synchronous communication and online asynchronous communication. In this complex field of research, one aspect that has yet to receive attention is the concept of intersubjective beliefs and the construction of the socially shared game world (Harari, 2014). One measure for holistically understanding social involvement in this context is community identification (Kordyaka et al., 2020;Mael & Ashforth, 1992). ...
Augmented reality (AR) games such as location-based games add virtual content on top of the real world. We investigate why playing these games feels meaningful to players by focusing on the dimensions of imagination and sociality. We theorise a structural model that we test with data collected from a global sample of players of the popular AR game Pokémon GO (N=515). Our findings show that nostalgic feelings about Pokémon increased imagining AR content in the real world. Surprisingly, using imagination in this way was a much stronger predictor of affection towards the fictional pokémon creatures than nostalgia. The affection towards the fictional creatures, in turn, increased the meaningfulness of playing. Regarding the social factors, community identification and social self-efficacy increased players' sense of meaningfulness of playing. As our study's main design implications, we highlight the importance of socially shared narratives and harnessing the players' imagination to support a sense of meaningfulness of playing.
... Therefore, this paper chose UTAUT2 as an important theoretical basis. Regarding the literature on game use behavior and willingness, some scholars directly adopted UTAUT2 theory (Ramírez-Correa et al., 2019;Harborth and Pape, 2020) but others modified, deleted, or supplemented research variables based on UTAUT2 to better apply them to specific research situations (Jang and Byon, 2019;Baabdullah, 2020;Sharma et al., 2020;Lin et al., 2022). ...
... As a strong predictor of intention, performance expectation helps to identify users' behavioral intentions (Martins et al., 2014;Wong et al., 2015;Aydin, 2018;Tan and Ooi, 2018). Relevant studies have confirmed the importance of performance expectation for players' willingness to use games in the online game environment (Marham and Saputra, 2019;Harborth and Pape, 2020). The price value, which was a part of the performance expectation dimension in this study, was considered to be one of the key factors affecting the intention to use e-sports games (Jang and Byon, 2019). ...
Combining games with mobile commerce applications has been a trend in recent years. Mobile commerce is attracting a large number of people, especially females, to play mini games on the platform. The gamification of mobile commerce may affect users’ platform satisfaction. This study aims to explore the intention of female users to play mobile commerce games and its impact on platform satisfaction. We collected data from females in China who played mobile commerce games and then used a structural equation model to test the various hypotheses we made. The results showed that game use intention fully mediated the impact of performance expectation, hedonic motivation, and social influence on platform satisfaction. Effort expectation had no significant impact on game use intention but had a positive impact on platform satisfaction. Game use intention had a positive impact on platform satisfaction. The frequency of playing games and the amount of money spent on the platform were positively correlated with game use intention. Females over 25 years old preferred to play mobile commerce games. This study provides a theoretical reference and practical enlightenment and makes a specific contribution to the development of mobile commerce platform and the application of gamification. However, this study has limitations in terms of test samples, research methods and research content, and further research on mobile commerce is required in the future.
... Ingress, on the other hand, is a newer franchise; players with immersive affinities may be players of other games or experiences which overlap with existing preferences. Studies of the impact of nostalgia on Pokémon GO suggest that childhood brand nostalgia has a significant impact on player habit [25]. While not directly immersion, habit represents an analog of the immersion trait, particularly how well a game embeds a player into its story. ...
... This distinction may be because Harry Potter: Wizards Unite has a tight coupling to the Harry Potter franchise, meaning players may be more gratified by feelings of nostalgia or appreciation of the franchise in general. This distinction appears to partially support the finding that childhood brand nostalgia is positively associated with hedonic motivation, an analog for enjoyment in behavioral intention, however, Pokémon GO's lack of difference is unexplained and warrants further study [25]. ...
Location-based games (LBG) impose virtual spaces on top of physical locations. Studies have explored LBG from various perspectives. However, a comprehensive study of who these players are, their traits, their gratifications, and the links between them is conspicuously absent from the literature. In this paper, we aim to address this lacuna through a series of surveys with 2390 active LBG players utilizing Tondello's Player Traits Model and Scale of Game playing Preferences, and Hamari's scale of LBG gratifications. Our findings (1) illustrate an association between player satisfaction and social aspects of the studied games, (2) explicate how the core-loops of the studied games impact the expressed gratifications and the affine traits of players, and (3) indicate a strong distinction between hardcore and casual players based on both traits and gratifications. Overall our findings shed light into the players of LBG, their traits, and gratifications they derive from playing LBGs.
... Typically, field researchers have used the attitude-behavior models to explore players' intention to continue to play games, such as the theory of planned behavior (Lee & Tsai, 2010), and the technology acceptance model (Harborth & Pape, 2020). However, the extant literature has not fully considered the antecedents or internal mechanisms of players' intention to continue playing Pokémon Go in most situations of collective activities from the perspective of social and media influences, such as social interaction and media richness. ...
... Some important constructs have been identified for mobile game use (e.g., enjoyment, fantasy, and flow). In addition to the factors attributed to the adoption of traditional mobile games, psychological and social motivational factors are emphasized in the studies, including nostalgic feelings (Harborth & Pape, 2020), social interaction and conversation with friends and strangers (Bueno et al., 2020;Vella et al., 2019), social needs (Alha, Koskinen, Paavilainen, & Hamari, 2019;Hsiao, Chang, & Tang, 2016), and community involvement (Ghazali, Mutum, & Woon, 2019). ...
Since its launch in 2016, Pokémon Go has attracted huge numbers of players, causing a boom in this game market. Although it is not as popular as before, from time to time we still find crowds of players gathered in some spots where Pokémon appear. Numerous reports have explored this Pokémon phenomenon; however, the exact reasons for its popularity remain unknown. The purpose of this study is to explore the post-adoption behavior of Pokémon Go players and its influential factors in the gaming and tourism industries. The theoretical model of stimulus-organism-response was drawn on to examine the impact of the environmental stimuli (social influence and media influence) on players’ internal organisms, which in turn affect their post-experience responses. Moreover, gender differences were also examined in the hypothetical relationships. A total of 342 valid questionnaires from actual gamers were collected in this study, and data analysis was performed using a structural equation model. The results show that stimulus effects, such as social stimuli (critical mass and social interaction) and media stimuli (content timeliness and media richness), have significant impacts on the players’ internal gamified experience (attachment and conformity), which in turn affect their visit intention to catch creatures at certain attractions and to continue playing Pokémon Go. Further, we have also found that players’ intention to visit Pokémon spots is significantly correlated with their intention to continue playing the game. Findings provide links between gamification and tourism literature. Further theoretical and managerial implications are provided.
... Werster) [12], it seems that the Pokémon world keeps engaging adults as well. Previous work on why people engage with the pokémon products have found nostalgia to indeed play a role [5,13], but also many other reasons have been given, such as Pokémon being perceived by consumers as a cool brand [14]. These findings invite a more careful analysis into the fictional and thematic elements of the Pokémon franchise. ...
... A surprising finding from Butcher et al., [39] was that the alignment of Pokémon GO with the rest of the Pokémon franchise was not significant for the players in their sample, and even more surprisingly, a higher level of nostalgia negatively influenced attitudes towards Pokémon GO [39]. In the light of other studies [5,13], the findings seem out of place. However, Butcher et al., themselves argue that the explanation might be that Pokémon GO does not align with brand quality expectations [40] of long term players [39]. ...
Pokémon has become the most profitable cross-media franchise since its creation 25 years ago. In this conceptual work, we go through the current eight generations of Pokémon games, movies and anime episodes to understand why the franchise appeals to humans. We focus on the following four core themes: (1) relationship with the Pokémon creatures; (2) exploration and adventure; (3) social connectedness and acceptance; and (4) green technologies and living in symbiosis with the environment. We discuss how these themes resonate with human primal desires and what aspects of Pokémon transcend into the real world. Our findings indicate that the Pokémon world is able to offer humans aspects of the hunter-gatherer era that are missing from the current urban way of living. The franchise appeals to human primal desires by being about exploring the world, understanding it and finding harmony with other living creatures. Our findings support previous work on the appeal of specific Pokémon games, and contributes to our understanding of what has made the franchise popular.
... The aforementioned benefits to some extent help us understand how Pokémon GO motivates players to continually engage in the game. Similar to other games, fun or enjoyment is a common incentive for continuously playing Pokémon GO (25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30). Game motivation could also be explained by the perception that individual wellbeing may result from game experiences via satisfying psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness, according to the self-determination theory (31,32). ...
... Actually, Pokémon GO provides a platform for players to perceive these needs and thus to improve enjoyment through customized avatars, collection and reward system, as well as social feedback from both online and offline interactions with other players (22,23,28,33). A nostalgic feeling from Pokémon fans who love Pokémon movies/serials or previous Pokémon games may also motivate them to try Pokémon GO (34-36) and sustain the engagement in the game (25,26). To attract players' active interaction and involvement, the game developer has been introducing new Pokémon and developing new functions continually such as the Raid Hours, monthly Community Day, the Trading System and the Buddy System, as well as the Go Battle League, during which players earn attractive or exclusive rewards from the game like rare Pokémon (e.g., shiny Pokémon) appearing more frequently on the map or being caught from doing raids. ...
... Value is created through complex networks (Tsiotsou, 2021) involving game organisations (e.g., developers, platform holders, publishers), players, gaming communities, and other stakeholders like policymakers, advocacy groups, and media. To illustrate, the successful launch of games like Pokémon GO, a location-based augmented reality (AR) game for mobile devices (Harborth and Pape, 2020), depends not only on the developer's innovation and player engagement but also on gaming communities that amplify excitement. Additionally, stakeholders such as policymakers, advocacy groups, and media can influence public sentiments and the regulatory environment. ...
Purpose
Drawing from transformative service research (TSR) and service ecosystem perspectives, the author seeks to provide multi-level insights into gaming service systems and call to action how this knowledge can contribute to cultivating socially responsible gaming by addressing the following research questions: What insights from service ecosystem and TSR literature can help optimise value co-creation and cultivate socially responsible practices in digital gaming services? What future research directions could advance the understanding of digital gaming services and their potential to develop a responsible gaming ecosystem that balances social well-being with commercial success?
Design/methodology/approach
Adopting a conceptual approach of theory synthesis and adaptation, the author discusses four overarching themes alongside key research gaps and directions crucial for understanding the dynamics of gaming ecosystem.
Findings
The central themes – “Exploring individuals as game service consumers”, “Gaming service exchange dynamics among meso-level stakeholders”, “A macro lens to gaming service ecosystem” and “The complexities of multi-actor dynamics and interdependencies” – shed light on how responsible services can be fostered.
Research limitations/implications
Given the absence of a well-defined scope for understanding responsible gaming, future research should develop a typology to capture its multifaceted aspects. Expanding beyond micro-level analysis, conducting consultation interviews with industry practitioners and policymakers can contribute insights into promoting responsible gaming services.
Social implications
The author offers insights for the game players, designers and developers, service providers and policymakers to promote a healthy gaming culture.
Originality/value
Through this research, the author advances the understanding of gaming as a service by illuminating value co-creation and co-destruction within an interconnected gaming service ecosystem through the lens of TSR. Such understanding empowers businesses to prioritise consumer welfare in their decision-making and practices.
... Moreover, understanding user intentions and the factors that underpin technology adoption enables organizations to tailor their products and services to meet the specific needs and expectations of their target audience [70]. By aligning their offerings with the principles laid out in TAM, companies can enhance customer satisfaction, increase user adoption rates, and ultimately strengthen their market share [68], [71]. ...
In today's interconnected production ecosystem, e-business DTs, including ERP, CRM, cloud computing, and information-sharing services, play a pivotal role in enhancing SMEs' market share by facilitating seamless information sharing across the supply chain. However, it is crucial to recognize that the adoption of diverse DTs can yield heterogeneous effects on SMEs' internal and external business processes, ultimately influencing their market competitiveness. Beyond technological investments, SMEs must consider how these technologies interact with their internal processes, organizational practices, and supply chain relationships to build unique competencies and capabilities that drive market competitiveness. Furthermore, the integration of DTs across the supply chain, involving suppliers and customers, is imperative for SMEs striving to enhance their market share and competitiveness in both domestic and international markets. This comprehensive analysis draws upon multiple theoretical foundations, including digital technology theory, market share theory, digital innovation theory, human-centered design theory, Technology Acceptance Theory (TAM), and Personalization Theory. These theories provide valuable insights into the complex interplay between digital technologies and SMEs' market share, offering guidance for organizations seeking to navigate the digital landscape and optimize their market positioning. In conclusion, this article highlights the need for a strategic and holistic approach to digital adoption in today's competitive business environment.
... Nonpersonal communication is its foundation, while its character is historical. A virtual game, Pokemon Go, bridged the feeling of nostalgia during childhood, impacting the consumer perception and behavioral intention towards utilizing a product through a virtual experience (Harborth & Pape, 2019). ...
This study aims to analyze the moderating influence of nostalgia, as evoked by watching a familiar television (TV) commercial, on the relationship between brand equity and purchase intention. It also aims to expand the literature on the practical application of personal and virtual nostalgia. Utilizing a quantitative research method, the researchers asked 178 respondents to participate in a survey asking the extent to which two TV ads they watched made them think about happy childhood memories and the extent to which they would buy those products on their next shopping or food trip. This study adapted the Consumer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) Model by David Aaker (1991). The study found that personal and virtual nostalgia have no significant effect on the relationship between CBBE and purchase intention. However, the study found a positive relationship between brand awareness and purchase intention, as well as brand loyalty and purchase intention. The study only analyzed the effects of nostalgia evoked by TV commercials from brands that still exist today. In a future study, the researchers recommend analyzing TV commercials from phased-out brands and comparing the results to that of brands currently in the market. This research aims to expand the literature and provide recommendations on using nostalgia marketing in the Philippine setting.
... An extremely interesting area of research into the great potential of Pokemon Go! is the study of players' motivations (Malik, et. al., 2020;Thongmak, 2020;Zsila et al., 2018) and sentimental feelings related to the Pokemon universe, which arose during the childhood of today's players (Harborth & Pape, 2020;Kot, 2021b). ...
This article attempts to determine the educational nature of “Pokémon Go!” game based on user interactions with virtual space and real-life elements. For this purpose, interviews with players in mini focus groups (mini FGI) were the chosen method. Respondents were asked about their interaction with actual objects that are reflected in the game, how they search for information about the locations themselves, and about the educational content in the game space. The players were also asked for their ideas on how to enhance the educational potential of the game, as such opinion of real-life players was deemed notable. Based on the results obtained, firstly, areas of potential educational value that still need to be improved were identified and, secondly, recommendations were formulated how to enhance the educational opportunities arising from the game.
... This scale was developed to measure an individual's nostalgic feelings toward a single brand and has been tested for validity and reliability. This four-item scale has been used in a number of settings including consumer products and breakfast cereals (Shields and Johnson, 2016b), Pok emon Go (Harborth and Pape, 2020) and retro marketing (Pir, 2019). ...
Purpose
The authors sought to examine how nostalgic feelings influenced purchase intentions of sport fans towards branded merchandise. Additionally, the goal was to test the childhood brand nostalgia (CBN) scale to see if it was an effective measure in this context. This was an important early step in understanding the way nostalgia may influence sport fan's merchandise preferences.
Design/methodology/approach
Surveys were completed by 601 fans of two professional sport teams in the USA. These consumers were targeted geographically through Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) and half given a modern branded t-shirt and the other half a retro branded t-shirt. To examine brand nostalgia in this context, the CBN measure was evaluated and examined to see its impact on each group, using hierarchical regressions.
Findings
The results demonstrated that CBN positively impacted consumers purchase intentions in the retro logoed t-shirt group. However, in the modern logoed t-shirt group, CBN did not significantly influence purchase intentions.
Practical implications
The findings of this study suggest that retro merchandise is working as expected, as it is attractive to those who feel nostalgic about their team. Secondarily, this study's findings suggest it may be vital for marketers to be conscious that their retro materials are connecting to the past.
Originality/value
This study was an early examination of a measure of nostalgia and its impact on purchase intentions in sport. The findings suggested that this CBN instrument may be appropriate in retro marketing research, especially regarding sport merchandise. Further, the findings suggest that nostalgic feelings may be influential toward retro merchandise, but not modern merchandise.
... The recent surge in Pokémon popularity has led to multiple age groups engaging with the free-to-play game (67)(68)(69). Our study reveals that players are stimulated to develop positive relationships with not only other players, but also their parents through game engagement within a family. ...
Objectives: Several physical, psychological, and social health consequences are caused by smartphone users’ addiction to games. A location-based game (LBG), Pokémon GO, recently garnered significant attention from young people. This study aims to explore their experiences with this game and motivations for playing, investigating their perspectives on the game’s implications for themselves and the public health of their communities.
Methods: Ten qualitative focus group interviews were conducted. Young adults, aged 18–25 years ( n = 60), were recruited in Hong Kong. Data were analyzed using a thematic approach.
Results: Five themes emerged: 1) missing out or self-regulation, 2) childhood memories of Pokémon, 3) extending virtual-reality exploration, 4) spending more time outdoors walking and exercising, and 5) getting together with others and social interaction.
Conclusions: This study showcases the motivational factors of young adults and their cohorts in societies worldwide. LBGs may impact players’ physical and social activity levels, and behavior. Nonetheless, certain negatives were identified (i.e., addiction and behavior resulting from a loss of self-control). These negatives deserve health practitioners’ attention and future studies should explore possible public health interventions
... There is a trend in the gaming industry to develop video games with a specific nostalgic focus in mind. Several studies focused on Pokemon Go as an elicitor of nostalgic memories that players had with prior experiences with the Pokemon franchise from their youth [12,13]. The growth of so-called "retro games" is another area of study for gaming nostalgia. ...
Video games have been a popular form of media entertainment since the 1970s, with gamers of all ages experiencing and engaging digital worlds and creating lasting memories in those spaces. As video games mature, so are their players-by some estimates, the average age of a gamer is in their 30s, and often playing games with their children. As such, video games are a potentially powerful elicitor of nostalgia, as is being recognized in more recent research and discourse. In this article, we describe and explain nostalgia as elicited from video gaming experiences, discuss the effects of gaming-induced nostalgia on psychological well-being, and offer direct avenues for fostering and growing this research.
... Building on Shields and Johnson's [62] construct of childhood brand nostalgia (CBN), defined as "[…] a positively valenced emotional attachment to a brand because of the brand's association with fond memories of the individual's non-recent lived past" [p. 346], Harborth and Pape [30] explored how nostalgia affects technology acceptance with Pokémon Go, a subsequent game in the same universe as the original Pokémon. Using the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology adapted for consumers (UTAUT2) and voluntary technology use [69], they found positive correlations between CBN and both behavioural intentions to adopt and play Pokémon Go and actual use, and particularly the model elements of effort expectancy, hedonic motivation and facilitating conditions. ...
This experimental study explores how game experience differs between players with different gameplay histories within the same game universe. We are interested in how prolonged engagement with a game series affects the gameplay experience in relation to the most recent game version in the series. A total of 54 participants were divided into four groups depending on their gaming experience, namely non-gamers, new-gamers, old-gamers and core-gamers. They played the mobile version of Super Mario Run, and questionnaire data was collected after the gameplay session. The results of the study showed that not only the players’ personal gameplay history but also the length of experience or degree of familiarity with the game universe affected the experience of playing a new game in the same game universe. Additionally, familiarity with the game universe had a positive impact on the feeling of competence, immersion, emotions and flow.
... In the psychological aspect, the nding highlighted the trend of Pokémon GO to be fashionable for those who are fond of online games and hinted that the bandwagon effect may exist in these conditions. The presence of a commonly played game might substantially in uence the player's internal attitude and behavioural intention towards the game [67,68]. The variety of age groups that have been attracted to install this free-to-play game is due to the Pokémon upsurge. ...
Objective To explore insights of young people’s experiences and motivations in Pokémon GO in Hong Kong. The perspectives of young people through qualitative focus group interviews. Results Eight focus group discussions with young people (n=45; age from 18-25 years old) recruited in Hong Kong. We analysed the discussions using a thematic approach. Five theme categories emerged from data analysis: missing out or self-regulation, childhood memories of Pokémon, extending virtual-reality exploration, spending more time outdoors for walking and exercise, gathering together and socially interacting with others. This study sets the way for a deeper analysis of motivation factors to young people that indicate the increasing playing location-based game (LBG) via smartphones worldwide among all cohorts of society. This relatively new phenomenon of LBG may impact players’ movement, social activity, and behaviour to gain a common goal into the preferences and effects of playing LBG for young people.
... Nostalgia marketing techniques were successful in restaurants where people are attracted more towards nostalgic-themed restaurants (Wen et al., 2019). With Pokémon Go's release, various researches proved that nostalgic emotion is an essential aspect of attracting players in gaming industries (Ghazali et al., 2019;Harborth & Pape, 2019). So, nostalgia marketing can be an excellent option to attract customers in the toy industry. ...
The current research paper aims to analyse the role of Nostalgic Emotion in not only creating a better Attitude and Attachment towards the product (here toys), but also by enhancing the purchasing intention among customers. The data for this study was collected from respondents aging from 20 years and above. The findings of this research revealed that there are no significant gender differences in the case of Nostalgic Emotion. Furthermore, the results also showed that Attitude and Attachment towards the product (toys) play as a mediating role between Nostalgic Emotion and the Purchasing Intention of the customers. It can be concluded that toy manufacturing companies can use nostalgia marketing as an effective way to attract more customers, thereby increasing its sales and profit. The results of this paper add to the existing literature on nostalgia marketing and also provides an insight into how nostalgia marketing can be considered as a better marketing tool in the Toy industry.
... Many contemporary adults grew up with Pokémon and carry fond memories of the characters. Playing Pokémon GO is therefore associated with 'nostalgic reverie' (Bonus et al. 2018) and people were immediately motivated to participate based on childhood nostalgia (Zsila et al. 2018;Harborth and Pape 2019;Vaterlaus et al. 2019). Players, scholars and commentators alike tend to agree that 'one of the key success factors of Pokémon GO is its success in tapping into the childhood memories of a large number of young adults' (Tang 2017: 726). ...
This article explores the impact of COVID-19 on the developers and players of Pokémon GO through the lens of nostalgia. Focusing on the game as a nostalgic text that works to remediate physical and social spaces, we examine how gameplay has changed in response to players’ restricted mobility and isolation during the 2020 global pandemic. The release of Pokémon GO in 2016 was a watershed moment in the development of mobile augmented reality games. Building on a popular culture franchise familiar to many, it fused cutting-edge technology with memories of the past. Previous studies suggest playing Pokémon GO is associated with dreamlike nostalgia for childhood adventures. But these experiences were intimately linked with physical movement, proximity to others, and the exploration of outdoor spaces. Confined to their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, once free-roaming players are now being encouraged to embrace isolated, sedentary play. There is an additional layer of nostalgia in operation as players and developers alike reminisce about socializing and playing in the world outside the home. This article therefore explores how Pokémon GO mediates player experiences and unpacks its role in negotiating both memory and contemporary societal trauma.
... Many contemporary adults grew up with Pokémon and carry fond memories of the characters. Playing Pokémon GO is therefore associated with 'nostalgic reverie' (Bonus et al. 2018) and people were immediately motivated to participate based on childhood nostalgia (Zsila et al. 2018;Harborth and Pape 2019;Vaterlaus et al. 2019). Players, scholars and commentators alike tend to agree that 'one of the key success factors of Pokémon GO is its success in tapping into the childhood memories of a large number of young adults' (Tang 2017: 726). ...
This article explores the impact of COVID-19 on the developers and players of Pokémon GO through the lens of nostalgia. Focusing on the game as a nostalgic text that works to remediate physical and social spaces, we examine how gameplay has changed in response to players’ restricted mobility and isolation during the 2020 global pandemic. The release of Pokémon GO in 2016 was a watershed moment in the development of mobile augmented reality games. Building on a popular culture franchise familiar to many, it fused cutting-edge technology with memories of the past. Previous studies suggest playing Pokémon GO is associated with dreamlike nostalgia for childhood adventures. But these experiences were intimately linked with physical movement, proximity to others, and the exploration of outdoor spaces. Confined to their homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, once free-roaming players are now being encouraged to embrace isolated, sedentary play. There is an additional layer of nostalgia in operation as players and developers alike reminisce about socializing and playing in the world outside the home. This article therefore explores how Pokémon GO mediates player experiences and unpacks its role in negotiating both memory and contemporary societal trauma.
... Augmented Reality (AR) is one of the most promising emerging technologies and has found its way into the research field of education, entertainment, games, daily life, and marketing, etc. [1][2][3][4]. Today, AR technology has gradually matured and become a research hotspot and trend in the field of education [5,6]. In a study on the application of AR technology in higher education during the period 2005-2019, it was found that computer science was prominent in the education field. ...
The Basic Design course can help students understand design principles and visual art elements It is a compulsory basic course for the department of art and design in many universities. In recent years, Augmented Reality (AR) technology has found its way into the field of design education and has become a popular textbook tool in teaching courses. There are not many pieces of research on the application of AR in design courses. Therefore, this study attempts to explore the factors that affect students’ acceptance of AR textbooks in Basic Design course and their continuance intention for AR textbooks. This study first focused on students with experience in using AR textbooks. Open-ended questions were used to collect factors that allow AR textbooks to be used in the design curriculum; then questionnaire surveys and factor analysis were conducted and the research hypotheses are presented. Then, the research hypotheses were verified through reliability and validity as well as structural equation modeling. Three factors and 15 items for students to accept AR textbooks in the Basic Design course were summarized in the research results, including the three factors named “Visual Attraction”, “Knowledge-ability”, and “Situational Experience”. The analysis of differences showed significant differences in gender among these three factors and no significant differences between grades and departments. Also, it was found from the analysis results of the structural equation model that the factors of “Visual Attraction” and “Knowledge-ability” both had a positive effect on the continuance intention, of which “Knowledge-ability” was the most important influencing factor. The results of this study can help the application and development of AR textbooks in the Basic Design course.
... Empirical studies indicate that consumers respond positively to known brands [3] because individuals' earliest experiences have an important influence on current and future preferences across the consumer life cycle [4]. Furthermore, prior research indicates that nostalgia positively influences technology acceptance of nostalgic games such as Pokémon Go [5]. Thus, this study proposes that nostalgic feelings from a user's childhood may positively bias her or his rationale in the privacy calculus and alleviate possible privacy concerns while increasing perceived benefits of the technology: The user's view on the privacy calculus is through the rose-colored glasses (Merriam-Webster defines the expression 'rose-colored glasses' as having "favorably disposed opinions [of something or somebody]" [6].) of nostalgia. ...
Pokémon Go is one of the most successful mobile games of all time. Millions played and still play this mobile augmented reality (AR) application, although severe privacy issues are pervasive in the app due to its use of several sensors such as location data and camera. In general, individuals regularly use online services and mobile apps although they might know that the use is associated with high privacy risks. This seemingly contradictory behavior of users is analyzed from a variety of different perspectives in the information systems domain. One of these perspectives evaluates privacy-related decision making processes based on concepts from behavioral economics. We follow this line of work by empirically testing one exemplary extraneous factor within the "enhanced APCO model" (antecedents-privacy concerns-outcome). Specific empirical tests on such biases are rare in the literature which is why we propose and empirically analyze the extraneous influence of a positivity bias. In our case, we hypothesize that the bias is induced by childhood brand nostalgia towards the Pokémon franchise. We analyze our proposition in the context of an online survey with 418 active players of the game. Our results indicate that childhood brand nostalgia influences the privacy calculus by exerting a large effect on the benefits within the trade-off and, therefore, causing a higher use frequency. Our work shows two important implications. First, the behavioral economics perspective on privacy provides additional insights relative to previous research. However, the effects of several other biases and heuristics have to be tested in future work. Second, relying on nostalgia represents an important, but also double-edged, instrument for practitioners to market new services and applications.
Digital games have emerged as a major form of hedonic information systems, attracting attention in the Information Systems field. However, it remains unclear whether existing theoretical knowledge can explain recent industry developments. To address this, we conducted a critical review of the literature on digital gaming experiences within the IS domain. Our review involved defining the concept of gaming experience and establishing boundary conditions to guide the review. A hermeneutic approach was applied to include 277 articles from 51 journals in the review. Our synthesis of the literature identified three aggregate research themes (internal dynamics of game players, game systems, and contextual experience) from existing gaming experience literature. Our critical analysis reveals the need for more focus on a process-based understanding of gaming experiences to better capture the dynamic and processual nature of digital gaming, as existing studies mostly draw on a variance-based perspective. We present a framework that illustrates a process-based understanding of the gaming experience. This framework informs a research agenda that suggests adopting a process perspective in future studies could better address challenges in gaming experience research, particularly those involving game updates, monetization changes, and playing across different situational contexts.
Video games are a significant part of audiovisual culture, and game engines are widely used not only for the construction of video games, but also for arts projects, virtual reality experiences, and serious or educational games. This chapter presents a series of short summaries which describe student projects produced on the games and digital media BSc degree programs at the University of Greenwich. These projects indicate interesting new directions in game engine experiences and contribute towards emerging strands of practically focused research in video games. Each project has involved background research into related literature and artifacts, which then informs the design, development, and evaluation of a prototype product. The projects discussed here specifically explore themes related to adaptive music; representation of animal species; retro aesthetics; the design of artificially intelligent game characters; and the representation of hallucinations or intoxicated states in games. As a collection there are some common themes, and the projects collectively point towards novel ways in which game engines may generate experiences that activate the visual and auditory senses in ways that elicit empathy, emotions, memories, and awareness of unusual sensory states and systems.
Nostalgia-based marketing strategies have garnered significant attention in recent times, captivating marketers for their ability to evoke deep emotions and influence consumer behavior. However, the success of nostalgia-based marketing is not guaranteed. The effectiveness of nostalgia depends on product characteristics and the target audience. This study aims to deepen the understanding of strong nostalgia. Qualitative research was employed to explore the boundaries of strong nostalgia-triggered feelings in two distinct entertainment products: the 2015 video game Pokémon Go and Disney's 2023 remake of The Little Mermaid. Interpretative analysis revealed two key concepts crucial for understanding target attitudes and behavior: the habituation phenomenon and changes in the core features of the original product. A nuanced and delicate balance is required between respecting the essence of the original nostalgic product and introducing innovations to prevent habituation. This delicate balance becomes crucial in preserving the core features that are integral to the formation of personal and collective childhood memories.
This article is a comprehensive review of the literature on smart technology in consumer studies from 1996 to 2023. While the paper provides information about the development of the field by identifying important publications and authors, it employs topic modeling to pinpoint key topics in papers published in marketing and business journals. These topics are then grouped into three research streams and evaluated concerning theoretical, contextual, and methodological perspectives. While doing so, specific gaps were identified. By revealing gaps in the literature, the study suggests promising avenues for further research. Finally, this article advances our comprehension of the smart technology literature in marketing and business journals and informs future inquiry in this rapidly evolving domain.
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of augmented reality (AR) media characteristics on consumers’ purchase intention (PI) for fashion goods within the fashion industry context.
Design/methodology/approach
This study establishes five independent variables of salient AR media characteristics derived from existing studies which includes interactivity, vividness, augmentation, simulated physical control and environmental embedding. A quantitative online survey method is conducted with a sample of 172 respondents.
Findings
The findings suggest that all five AR media characteristics have a positive and significant influence on consumers’ PI for fashion goods. Among these five characteristics, interactivity and simulated physical control have the strongest positive impact on PI, followed by vividness, environmental embedding and augmentation.
Originality/value
This study provides valuable insights for fashion brands to better understand the media characteristics that consumers may be looking out for in AR experiences that could have an influence on their PI for fashion goods. This study also contributes to the literature by identifying the most influential AR media characteristics in the context of the fashion industry.
The paper explores how scholars apply causal modeling to gain an understanding of augmented reality as innovative technology and its potential for application. To do so, we conducted a structured literature review and applied a graph database-driven approach to analyze how scholars research augmented reality. Such an approach enables in-depth analysis of the body of knowledge that is not accessible in traditional ways of exploring literature. The results help to understand where we as a community stand and how directions for future research can help reshape the understanding of augmented reality and its application.
This article examines the music of the Pokémon franchise through the concept of nostalgic potential—a newly coined term defined as music’s capacity to evoke, enhance, and exploit wistful sentiment through specific and identifiable musical elements. The nostalgia identified here is childhood brand nostalgia, a concept identified by A. B. Shields and J. W. Johnson, a particularly potent form of this emotion of reminiscence for a person’s youth upon exposure to a brand or franchise. This article will illuminate how we can identify specific musical elements as contributing to the nostalgic potential of musical material by using newly adapted gestural analytical techniques. In identifying such elements, analyses will point to how we can determine the locus of the nostalgic potential, in this case, as being located in the sense of adventure, a key ludic component of Pokémon video game iterations. This article will outline two case studies that greatly contribute to the generation, evocation, enhancement, and exploitation of the nostalgic potential located in two video game music texts—namely the Pokémon Center theme and Route/Wild Area music across multiple franchise iterations. This research substantially contributes to our understanding of nostalgia in relation to musical texts whilst providing a new, workable, and sufficiently adaptable framework for identifying how childhood brand nostalgia—and by extension, other forms of nostalgia—can be evoked and enhanced by video game music texts and their franchises.
Pokémon GO is a 2016 augmented reality (AR) video game requiring players to move around in the real world and catch Pokémon to complete their collection. Examining different gameplay styles and user psychology in AR games can provide important insights for gameplay design. As multiple self- and other-beneficial strategies can be used to advance in the game, the present study investigated personality and behavioral correlates of four kinds of gameplay: independent, social-dependent, active, and invested. A multinational sample of urrent Pokémon GO players was recruited (N = 516, Mage = 28.83 years, SD = 9.25) and responded to measures of bright and dark personality traits, as well as a questionnaire on Pokémon GO gameplay behaviors. Results indicated that older players and those with multiple accounts were more likely to engage in most forms of gameplay; further, women were less likely to be active players. Among personality traits, psychopathy was a strong predictor of independent, social-dependent, and invested gameplay; agreeableness explained social-dependent strategies in line with social exchange theory; conscientiousness was associated with being a regular player; and fairness contributed to spending more money on the game (invested gameplay). Limitations and suggestions for future research are discussed.
Retail surveillance technologies that enable marketers to track the in-store behaviour of an individual consumer are becoming commonplace. Yet, despite questions raised about their ethicality, their acceptability from a consumer perspective remains under-researched, thereby limiting a marketer’s ability to make informed decisions when deploying such technologies. Accordingly, this study focuses on a ‘matched pair’ of widely used technologies selected specifically for the purpose of examining its core proposition that a voluntary, transparent form of surveillance that provides the consumer with direct benefits (Shopkick), will be viewed more favourably than will its equal and opposite counterpart (Shopperception). Building on the theoretical perspective of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), a sample of 477 survey respondents provided reasons why each technology might, or might not, be acceptable using an essentially open-ended questionnaire. Responses were coded and labelled with the subsequent lists of reasons being analysed descriptively. A single closed-ended question required respondents to rate their overall acceptability, and these responses were subject to t-tests. A comparison of the results obtained across two independent subsamples show that consumers evaluate ‘Shopkick’ to be considerably more acceptable than ‘Shopperception’, thereby confirming the study’s core proposition whilst also providing insights into the specific ‘costs and benefits’ associated with each technology from the consumers’ point of view. The study’s findings and their implications are then delineated from the perspective of both practitioners and academicians. For practitioners, an easy-to-use ‘infographic’ visual decision-making aid designed to help retailers make more informed choices about if and how to best to deploy the new generation of in-store surveillance technologies is developed. For academicians with a focus on theoretical considerations, a variation of the TAM as it relates to the consumers’ propensity to accept or reject an in-store surveillance technology is also proposed.
The global digital gaming industry has grown rapidly in recent years. Rapid technological advancements are changing the ways in which players can interact with video games as individuals and collectives. In addition to the increased penetration of games, the reasons for which people play and employ games need careful attention. In this paper, we have systematically reviewed the peer-reviewed journal articles (n = 91) relevant to the gamers’ motivations of playing digital games. In addition to analysing the publication trends, we have identified and discussed a set of six key motivational themes (immersion and flow, gratification and affect, escapism, social interaction, identification, and goal orientation). Subsequently, we call for further research on theoretical and methodological advancement as well as individual/social wellbeing and dark sides of digital gaming in relation to players’ motivation.
The purpose of this study is to find the key factors of influence for the use and acceptance of Virtual Reality (VR) by tourists visiting National Parks in Costa Rica. The aim is to find whether tourists are willing to use VR to contribute to the eco-friendly performance of the area they visit and to determine whether they are willing to use VR in environmental tourism to protect flora and fauna. This study is quantitative and uses the theoretical Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) Model and a survey as the research instrument to obtain data. Data analysis was carried out using a PLS-SEM statistical analysis. The data collection procedure consisted of 50 people being surveyed in the initial pre-test phase and later 455 tourists in the fieldwork phase with national or foreign people over the age of 18 who visit or have visited the national parks of Costa Rica. The results show that there is a positive relationship between eco-friendly performance and the intention to use VR technology, as well as the actual use of VR for the benefit of the environment. The UTAUT2 model was used to find the effect of eco-friendly performance on the intention to use VR, as well as the use of this technology during visits to tourist destinations. The originality of the work is in answering the question of how to develop sustainable tourism in Costa Rica with the use of VR devices and applications that also allow the conservation of flora and fauna.
Augmented reality (AR) greatly diffused into the public consciousness in the last years, especially due to the success of mobile applications like Pokémon Go. However, only few people experienced different forms of augmented reality like head-mounted displays (HMDs). Thus, people have only a limited actual experience with AR and form attitudes and perceptions towards this technology only partially based on actual use experiences, but mainly based on hearsay and narratives of others, like the media or friends. Thus, it is highly difficult for developers and product managers of AR solutions to address the needs of potential users. Therefore, we disentangle the perceptions of individuals with a focus on their concerns about AR. Perceived concerns are an important factor for the acceptance of new technologies. We address this research topic based on twelve intensive interviews with laymen as well as AR experts and analyze them with a qualitative research method.
Augmented reality (AR) gained much public attention since the success of Poke ́mon Go in 2016. Technology companies like Apple or Google are currently focusing primarily on mobile AR (MAR) technologies, i.e. applications on mobile devices, like smartphones or tablets. Associated privacy issues have to be investigated early to foster market adoption. This is especially relevant since past research found several threats associated with the use of smartphone applications. Thus, we investigate two of the main privacy risks for MAR application users based on a sample of 19 of the most downloaded MAR applications for Android. First, we assess threats arising from bad privacy policies based on a machine-learning approach. Second, we investigate which smartphone data resources are accessed by the MAR applications. Third, we combine both approaches to evaluate whether privacy policies cover certain data accesses or not. We provide theoretical and practical implications and recommendations based on our results.
Physical space has become intertwined with digital information with the escalatory development of information and communication technologies such as ubiquitous computing, mobile and wearable devices, GPS technology, wireless networks, smart city applications and augmented reality. The relationship between urban space and location-based technology has transformed everyday life practices; and one of these life practices is playing game. Location based mobile games (LBMGs) are being played on streets and provide interaction with urban environments. Mobile devices become the interface between the player and urban space, and players experience the urban through the game narrative. Nowadays, the most popular LBMGs are Ingress and Pokémon Go. Although the both games were created by the same company and configured on the same map, they arouse different effects. LBMGs have a great potential to shape gaming experiences thus researching different effects of Ingress and Pokémon Go hold an academic importance. The difference between these two games can only be revealed by participating in game communities and conducting a qualitative research. Because of that, this study is built on an ethnographic research about Ingress and Pokémon Go; and the results of the research revealed the importance of sociability. In this study, firstly, LBMGs are defined and the influences of these games on everyday life are discussed. Secondly, the differences and similarities are examined between Ingress and Pokémon Go according to the analysis obtained from participant observation and in-depth interviews. Finally, the importance of sociability is emphasized and foresights are provided in the light of research results to contribute to the game studies.
Purpose: Although there has been research examining the physical benefits of playing the
mobile augmented reality exergame, Pokémon GO (released in July 2016), the mental health
benefits have not been investigated. Therefore, to add to the body of knowledge concerning the
mental health benefits of playing exergames in the new context of augmented-reality mobile
games, this study investigated the positive and beneficial concept of flow and its association
with playing Pokémon GO.
Design/Method/Approach: A quantitative survey of 202 adult players of Pokémon GO using two
validated survey instruments, measuring flow and nostalgia, investigated the correlation
between the beneficial state of flow, and playing Pokémon GO. Additionally, thematic analysis
was used to analyse participant responses to optional, open-ended questions.
Findings: Significant predictors for 27% of variance in flow levels of Pokémon GO players were:
game level achieved, playing alone, nostalgia for Pokémon from childhood, and playing with
family. The themes identified by thematic analysis of participant comments concerned the
beneficial effects they considered Pokémon GO was having on their social, mental, and physical
well-being.
Seamless cooperation between individuals is essentially a crucial aspect of any successful endeavor. A host of literature has been published in the academic realm about how cooperation could be cultivated. However, true cooperation often forms organically without external enforcement. Recently, there has been one special example of a context where cooperation seemed to have effortlessly sprung up between people who might not even have had previous connections. The context is video/online games; games such as Ingress, Pokémon Go, and World of Warcraft bind people together to work against insurmountable odds and to overcome jointly held challenges. Organizations of many types have recently begun to gamify their structures and services in order to cultivate such seamless cooperation. However, before this potential of games can be successfully wielded outside video games, we need to understand better how games are able to cultivate such cooperation. Therefore, in this study we investigate how games can induce and cultivate we-intention of working as a group. Specifically, we investigate how cooperative game features affect different forms of group dynamics and how they further translate into we-intentions. We employ data from users of the augmented reality game Ingress (N = 206). The results show that cooperative game features induce we-intentions via positively increasing group norms, social identity, joint commitment, attitudes toward cooperation, and anticipated positive emotions. The findings imply that practitioners who are looking to increase cooperation should find that gamification inspired by cooperative game design is beneficial and preferable over individual-based gamification efforts.
Augmented Reality (AR) is one of the most prominent emerging technologies recently. This increase in recognition has happened predominantly because of the success of the smartphone game "Pokémon Go". But research on AR is not a new strand of literature. Especially computer scientists investigate different technological solutions and areas of application for almost 30 years. This systematic literature review aims at analyzing, synthesizing and categorizing this strand of research in the information systems (IS) domain. We follow an established methodology for conducting the literature review ensuring rigor and replicability. We apply a keyword and backward search resulting in 28 and 118 articles, respectively. Results are categorized with regard to the focus of the research and the domain of the application being investigated. We show that research on user behavior is underrepresented in the current IS literature on AR compared to technical research, especially in the domains gaming and smartphone browsers.
In 2016, Pokémon Go became the most popular game in the history of smartphone games and was among the first games to feature geo-located augmented reality (AR) elements. The goal of the present research was to obtain a deeper understanding concerning the motivations underlying Pokémon Go use and to create a measure that assesses these motivations. By extending the framework of the Motives for Online Gaming Questionnaire, three new factors – Outdoor Activity, Nostalgia, and Boredom – were added based on the findings of qualitative analysis, and which led to the creation of the Motives for Online Gaming Questionnaire - Pokémon Go extension (MOGQ-PG). Confirmatory factor analysis was carried out on a sample of Pokémon Go players (N = 621). Results demonstrated that the final 37-item, first-order, 10-factor model had appropriate factor structure and internal consistency. A second follow-up study on Pokémon Go players (N = 510) examined associations between gaming motivations, problematic use, and impulsivity. Results demonstrated that impulsivity was not related to the MOGQ-PG motives. Results also showed that competition and fantasy motivations predicted problematic gaming behavior. The present research is the first empirical contribution to the assessment and understanding of the motivational background of playing AR games such as Pokémon Go.
Background: Poor physical activity is one of the major health care problems in Western civilizations. Various digital gadgets aiming to increase physical activity, such as activity trackers or fitness apps, have been introduced over recent years. The newest products are serious games that incorporate real-life physical activity into their game concept. Recent studies have shown that such games increase the physical activity of their users over the short term.
Objective: In this study, we investigated the motivational effects of the digital game “Pokémon Go” leading to continued use or abandonment of the game. The aim of the study was to determine aspects that motivate individuals to play augmented reality exergames and how this motivation can be used to strengthen the initial interest in physical activity.
Methods: A total of 199 participants completed an open self-selected Web-based survey. On the basis of their self-indicated assignment to one of three predefined user groups (active, former, and nonuser of Pokémon Go), participants answered various questions regarding game experience, physical activity, motivation, and personality as measured by the Big Five Inventory.
Results: In total, 81 active, 56 former, and 62 nonusers of Pokémon Go were recruited. When asked about the times they perform physical activity, active users stated that they were less physically active in general than former and nonusers. However, based on a subjective rating, active users were more motivated to be physically active due to playing Pokémon Go. Motivational aspects differed for active and former users, whereas fan status was the same within both groups. Active users are more motivated by features directly related to Pokémon, such as catching all possible Pokémon and reaching higher levels, whereas former users stress the importance of general game quality, such as better augmented reality and more challenges in the game. Personality did not affect whether a person started to play Pokémon Go nor their abandonment of the game.
Conclusions: The results show various motivating elements that should be incorporated into augmented reality exergames based on the game Pokémon Go. We identified different user types for whom different features of the game contribute to maintained motivation or abandonment. Our results show aspects that augmented reality exergame designers should keep in mind to encourage individuals to start playing their game and facilitate long-term user engagement, resulting in a greater interest in physical activity.
The emergence of addictive problems associated with the development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) is a challenge for mental health in modern societies. For this reason, the Spanish Mental Health Strategy, currently in project, includes the problem of “emerging addictions” in young people, in the 14 mental health topics to be analysed. The main objective of this research was to develop three screening tools that can be used by health staff (e.g., psychologists, physicians) to better link early detection with early intervention in the field of technological addictions. In this paper, three kind of technological addictions were selected: Internet/social networks, mobile and video games. Two groups of participants were selected for each technology: a) users of Internet/social network, mobile or video games without psychological problems due to the use of these technologies, and b) people who sought counselling or advice for their addictive problems with some of these technologies. Three screening tools for each technological addiction (Internet/social network, mobile and video games) were developed. These tools consist on the two items of each of the tests which have the highest Positive Predictive Values (PPV) to differentiate between the non-problematic users of technologies and those who have an addictive problem with Internet, mobile or video games. This article shows three screening tools that can be used by health or clinical staff, in the case that the professional supposes that the patient has an addictive problem with any of the three technologies. Then, the screening procedure should be implemented. If the diagnostic of addiction is confirmed, the patient should be treated with psychological treatment based in evidence. Some advices are also proposed for those who do not need any specialized intervention for addiction.
Gamification is an approach to motivate users of information systems by implementing game elements. Despite its potentials, the use of gamification in practice has also received criticism because most gamification elements are integrated into systems without considering the preferences of the respective users and without considering contextual aspects. Hence, we aim at identifying which elements users of learning management systems prefer. Furthermore, we want to identify their preferences regarding the amount and combination of gamification elements. To identify user preferences, we conducted a discrete choice task among learning management system users following the best-worst scaling method. Our results show that users prefer a bundle of four gamification elements: level, goals, status, and points. This is especially interesting since popular elements, such as a leaderboard or badges, are not most preferred. This highlights the need to consider user preferences and contextual aspects to ensure a successful implementation of gamification elements.
Mobile games such as Pokémon Go have become a major form of entertainment, and yet little is known about why people play the games and how their motives associate with well-being. Although literature on motives for playing video and online games is informative, the findings may not reflect the full spectrum of mobile gaming motives due to some unique affordances of mobile games (e.g., mobility). To catch up with the evolving gaming context, a popular mobile game, Pokémon Go, was taken as an example to explore individuals' mobile gaming motives. A Pokémon Go Motive Scale was developed. Seven motives were identified through factor analyses based on survey data from 262 Pokémon Go players (45 percent women; M age = 30.71, standard deviation = 7.77): Exercise, Fun, Escapism, Nostalgia, Friendship Maintenance, Relationship Initiation, and Achievement. Both Fun and Friendship Maintenance were positive correlates of well-being, whereas Escapism and Nostalgia were negative correlates. Relationship Initiation was associated with both better and poorer well-being. Implications of the findings are discussed.
Provides a nontechnical introduction to the partial least squares (PLS) approach. As a logical base for comparison, the PLS approach for structural path estimation is contrasted to the covariance-based approach. In so doing, a set of considerations are then provided with the goal of helping the reader understand the conditions under which it might be reasonable or even more appropriate to employ this technique. This chapter builds up from various simple 2 latent variable models to a more complex one. The formal PLS model is provided along with a discussion of the properties of its estimates. An empirical example is provided as a basis for highlighting the various analytic considerations when using PLS and the set of tests that one can employ is assessing the validity of a PLS-based model. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
This study is part of a doctoral thesis on the topic of Hyperfiction: Past, Present and Future of Storytelling through Hypertext. It explores in depth the impact of transmedia storytelling and the role of hypertext in the realm of the currently popular social media phenomenon Pokémon GO. Storytelling is a powerful method to engage and unite people. Moreover, the technology progress adds a whole new angle to the method, with hypertext and cross-platform sharing that enhance the traditional storytelling so much that transmedia storytelling gives unlimited opportunities to affect the everyday life of people across the globe. This research aims at examining the transmedia storytelling approach in Pokémon GO, and explaining how that contributed to its establishment as a massive worldwide hit in less than a week. The social engagement is investigated in all major media platforms, including traditional and online media channels. Observation and content analyses are reported in this paper to form the conclusion that transmedia storytelling with the input of hypertext has a promising future as a method of establishing a productive and rewarding communication strategy.
Keywords—Communication, hypertext, Pokémon GO, storytelling, transmedia.
Nostalgia has endured a negative reputation, being branded an unhealthy preoccupation with
one’s past. This reputation is unwarranted. Nostalgia has remarkable implications for one’s future. It strengthens approach orientation, raises optimism, evokes inspiration, boosts creativity, and kindles prosociality. Far from reflecting escapism from the present, nostalgia potentiates an attainable future.
According to the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), behavioral intentions to use a new IT are primarily the product of a rational analysis of its desirable perceived outcomes, namely perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU). But what happens with the continued use of an IT among experienced users? Does habit also kick in as a major factor or is continued use only the product of its desirable outcomes? This study examines this question in the context of experienced online shoppers. The data show that, as hypothesized, online shoppers intentions to continue using a website that they last bought at depend not only on PU and PEOU but also on habit. In fact, habit alone can explain a large proportion of the variance of continued use of a website. Moreover, the explained variance indicates that habit may also be a major predictor of PU and PEOU among experienced shoppers. Implications are discussed.
Research dealing with various aspects of* the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1985,
1987) is reviewed, and some unresolved issues are discussed. In broad terms, the theory is
found to be well supported by empirical evidence. Intentions to perform behaviors of different
kinds can be predicted with high accuracy from attitudes toward the behavior, subjective
norms, and perceived behavioral control; and these intentions, together with perceptions of
behavioral control, account for considerable variance in actual behavior. Attitudes, subjective
norms, and perceived behavioral control are shown to be related to appropriate sets of salient
behavioral, normative, and control beliefs about the behavior, but the exact nature of these
relations is still uncertain. Expectancy value formulations are found to be only partly
successful in dealing with these relations. Optimal rescaling of expectancy and value
measures is offered as a means of dealing with measurement limitations. Finally, inclusion of
past behavior in the prediction equation is shown to provide a means of testing the theory*s
sufficiency, another issue that remains unresolved. The limited available evidence concerning
this question shows that the theory is predicting behavior quite well in comparison to the
ceiling imposed by behavioral reliability.
Nostalgia is a self-conscious, bittersweet but predominantly positive and fundamentally social emotion. It arises from fond memories mixed with yearning about one's childhood, close relationships, or atypically positive events, and it entails a redemption trajectory. It is triggered by a variety of external stimuli or internal states, is prevalent, is universal, and is experienced across ages. Nostalgia serves a self-oriented function (by raising self-positivity and facilitating perceptions of a positive future), an existential function (by increasing perceptions of life as meaningful), and a sociality function (by increasing social connectedness, reinforcing socially oriented action tendencies, and promoting prosocial behavior). These functions are independent of the positive affect that nostalgia may incite. Also, nostalgia-elicited sociality often mediates the self-positivity and existential functions. In addition, nostalgia maintains psychological and physiological homeostasis along the following regulatory cycle: (i) Noxious stimuli, as general as avoidance motivation and as specific as self-threat (negative performance feedback), existential threat (meaninglessness, mortality awareness), social threat (loneliness, social exclusion), well-being threat (stress, boredom), or, perhaps surprisingly, physical coldness intensify felt nostalgia; (ii) in turn, nostalgia (measured or manipulated) alleviates the impact of threat by curtailing the influence of avoidance motivation on approach motivation, buttressing the self from threat, limiting defensive responding to meaninglessness, assuaging existential anxiety, repairing interpersonal isolation, diminishing the blow of stress, relieving boredom through meaning reestablishment, or producing the sensation of physical warmth. Nostalgia has a checkered history, but is now rehabilitated as an adaptive psychological resource.
Discriminant validity assessment has become a generally accepted prerequisite for analyzing relationships between latent variables. For variance-based structural equa-tion modeling, such as partial least squares, the Fornell-Larcker criterion and the examination of cross-loadings are the dominant approaches for evaluating discriminant validity. By means of a simulation study, we show that these ap-proaches do not reliably detect the lack of discriminant valid-ity in common research situations. We therefore propose an alternative approach, based on the multitrait-multimethod ma-trix, to assess discriminant validity: the heterotrait-monotrait ratio of correlations. We demonstrate its superior performance by means of a Monte Carlo simulation study, in which we compare the new approach to the Fornell-Larcker criterion and the assessment of (partial) cross-loadings. Finally, we provide guidelines on how to handle discriminant validity issues in variance-based structural equation modeling.
The authors report a study of the effects of price, brand, and store information on buyers’ perceptions of product quality and value, as well as their willingness to buy. Hypotheses are derived from a conceptual model positing the effects of extrinsic cues (price, brand name, and store name) on buyers’ perceptions and purchase intentions. Moreover, the design of the experiment allows additional analyses on the relative differential effects of price, brand name, and store name on the three dependent variables. Results indicate that price had a positive effect on perceived quality, but a negative effect on perceived value and willingness to buy. Favorable brand and store information positively influenced perceptions of quality and value, and subjects’ willingness to buy. The major findings are discussed and directions for future research are suggested.
Pilot information on the health behaviors and perceptions of adult, dog owning, Pokémon GO players in the US was gathered via an anonymous, on-line survey. A total of 269 participants provided details about their playing habits, daily exercise routines, and interactions with their family and dog, and how these were impacted by playing the game. Playing Pokémon GO affected the amount of time players spent with other people and pets, with 43.2% of respondents reporting an increased amount of time spent with family/household members and 52.3% reporting they spent more time with their dog. Additionally, 62.9% of participants reported spending more time walking their dog since starting to play. A statistically significant increase in amount of exercise obtained was found when comparing pre-to post-game levels. A number of respondents reported feeling less anxious leaving the house (38.6%), interacting with strangers (39.7%), and going to new places (39.4%) after they began playing Pokémon GO. In conclusion, playing Pokémon GO appears to positively impact all areas studied, suggesting a new opportunity to enhance both mental and physical health.
We investigate the technology acceptance factors of the AR smartphone game Pokémon Go with a PLS-SEM approach based on the UTAUT2 model by Venkatesh et al. [1]. Therefore, we conducted an online study in Germany with 683 users of the game. Many other studies rely on the users’ imagination of the application’s functionality or laboratory environments. In contrast, we asked a relatively large user base already interacting in the natural environment with the application. Not surprisingly, the strongest predictor of behavioral intention
to play Pokémon Go is hedonic motivation, i.e. fun and pleasure due to playing the game. Additionaly, we find medium-sized effects of effort expectancy on behavioral intention, and of habit on behavioral intention and use behavior. These results imply that AR applications – besides needing to be easily integrable in the users’ daily life – should be designed in an intuitive and easily understandable way. We contribute to the understanding of the phenomenon of Pokémon Go by investigating established acceptance factors that potentially
Pokémon Go was the first mobile augmented reality (AR) game to reach the top of the download charts of mobile applications. However, little is known about this new generation of mobile online AR games. Existing theories provide limited applicability for user understanding. Against this background, this research provides a framework based on uses and gratification theory, technology risk research, and flow theory. The proposed framework aims to explain the drivers of attitudinal and intentional reactions, such as continuance in gaming or willingness to invest money in in-app purchases. A survey among 642 Pokémon Go players provides insights into the psychological drivers of mobile AR games. The results show that hedonic, emotional, and social benefits and social norms drive consumer reactions while physical risks (but not data privacy risks) hinder consumer reactions. However, the importance of these drivers differs depending on the form of user behavior.
We examined how playing a game employing augmented reality (AR) technology increases attachment to the place of playing. Place attachment refers to the relationship between people and places, which has numerous benefits for individual well-being. Popular location-based AR games often include elements that are known to predict place attachment: exploration, social relations or the experience of enjoyment in a place. We argue that positive emotions triggered by playing can influence players’ place attachment via the process of gamification. We tested this hypothesis in a correlational study conducted among Pokémon Go players. Our analyses showed that satisfaction from playing and the social relations made during play positively predict place attachment, but the amount of time spent on playing does not. A series of mediation analyses showed that relations among game satisfaction, social relations, and place attachment were mediated by the appraisal of the place as exciting. This study demonstrated a mechanism of emotional transfer between positive experiences from playing and place attachment, which may prove useful in other domains, such as education, land conservation, or marketing.
Pokémon Go is a popular augmented reality mobile game. Players find imaginary creatures by wandering into the real world, which can then be collected and used in combat. In this paper an assessment of Pokémon Go early usage in the Italian community and of its correlates with the Big Five personality traits is given. The resulting profile of early PG player is one of a more Introverted, close person with high agreeability and conscientiousness. Extraversion and Stability are positively correlated with the collection part of the game, while Agreeableness is a negative predictor thereof. Openness is correlated to the level of proficiency.
Despite the outstanding growth of social network sites in recent years, more research is needed to better understand how users' intentions to share their experiences with products and brands are formed through these applications. With this in mind, this study takes the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) as a reference and develops an extended model by considering the substitution of “price value” with “privacy concerns”, since social network sites are free applications, with no economic cost to users but with potential problems of self-disclosure. Our model also includes the interrelations between the explanatory variables postulated in the UTAUT2, an issue that is not considered in its original formulation. This approach is empirically tested through a quantitative study in the tourism industry, where social network sites have significant influence. The results from a sample of 537 tourists show that there are three main drivers of users' intentions to use social network sites to publish content about their experiences: performance expectancy, hedonic motivation, and habit. Additionally, our results support the existence of interrelations between the explanatory variables. Finally, three of the factors studied (i.e., facilitating conditions, social influence, and privacy concerns) do not have any influence on the intention to use social network sites to share content.
A Primer on Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), by Hair, Hult, Ringle, and Sarstedt, provides a concise yet very practical guide to understanding and using PLS structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). PLS-SEM is evolving as a statistical modeling technique and its use has increased exponentially in recent years within a variety of disciplines, due to the recognition that PLS-SEM’s distinctive methodological features make it a viable alternative to the more popular covariance-based SEM approach. This text includes extensive examples on SmartPLS software, and is accompanied by multiple data sets that are available for download from the accompanying website (www.pls-sem.com).
None of the elements that contribute to the phenomenon of Pokémon Go are particularly new. Augmented-reality and location-based games, artworks, and marketing campaigns have existed for well over a decade. Meanwhile, the Pokémon franchise of videogames, trading cards, comic books, and anime has existed for more than two. Even the data that Pokémon Go is built from is generated by players of Niantic’s earlier locative game, Ingress. If there is nothing “new” about the phenomenon of Pokémon Go, then what is there to learn from its rapid ascension in the cultural zeitgeist?
In this article I maintain that it is the increased ubiquity of the smartphone and its tendency to reconfigure existing media and cultural practices that has allowed the novelty of augmented reality and the nostalgia of Pokémon to converge in a perfect storm of branding, design, preexisting data, and established technologies.
Driving can be dangerous, especially for young and inexperienced drivers. To help address the issue of inexperience, a gamified logbook smartphone application was designed and developed for learner drivers in Queensland, Australia. The application aims to make it easy for learner drivers to record their mandatory practice sessions while the added gamification aims to encourage learners to undertake a wider range of practice. Previous research reported on a lab-based study of a gamified version and a non-gamified version of this application. This paper presents an updated design of the application and investigates the effect of the application when tested in the field. Results are provided from a within-groups field study undertaken with 25 learner drivers over a four-week period, during which the effect of the gamification on behavior change, perceived motivation and user experience was studied. Although results suggest that the gamified logbook was perceived as more enjoyable and motivating than the non-gamified version, no significant change in behavior was found. This encourages discussion on the effectiveness of gamification to encourage behavior change and the feasibility of using gamification in this particular context.
The social inclusion of newly resettled refugees is a significant issue confronting both refugees and their host societies. Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are increasingly viewed as a useful resource in programs that provide settlement services or promote participation in society. This paper moves beyond the conventional discussion on the digital divide to explore what people are actually able to do and achieve with ICTs. We draw on an analysis of the use of ICTs for particular purposes by more than 50 resettled refugees to develop an explanation of the process by which ICT use contributes to their social inclusion. We propose that ICT constitutes a resource from which a set of five valuable capabilities is derived: to participate in an information society, to communicate effectively, to understand a new society, to be socially connected, and to express a cultural identity. In realizing these capabilities through ICT use, refugees exercise their agency and enhance their well-being in ways that assist them to function effectively in a new society and regain control over their disrupted lives.
This research seeks to expand the current understanding of nostalgia towards childhood as it relates to consumer brand relationships and provide a framework for better understanding the phenomenon as it appears in both academic and real-world settings. In this paper, the authors use existing literature on nostalgia and consumer interviews to define childhood brand nostalgia as a positively valenced emotional attachment to a brand because of the brand's association with fond memories of the individual's non-recent lived past. A scale to measure an individual's childhood brand nostalgia is developed and tested to ensure convergent, discriminant, and predictive validity. The scale is found to capture individual differences in nostalgic feelings towards a single brand, and individuals are found to have varying levels of nostalgic feelings for multiple brands across multiple product categories. This demonstrates the usefulness of this scale in determining a consumer's nostalgia towards a particular brand from their childhood.
'Trolling' refers to a specific type of malicious online behaviour, intended to disrupt interactions, aggravate interactional partners and lure them into fruitless argumentation. However, as with other categories, both 'troll' and 'trolling' may have multiple, inconsistent and incompatible meanings, depending upon the context in which the term is used and the aims of the person using the term. Drawing data from 14 online fora and newspaper comment threads, this paper explores how online users mobilise and make use of the term 'troll'. Data was analysed from a discursive psychological perspective. Four repertoires describing trolls were identified in posters online messages: 1) that trolls are easily identifiable, 2) nostalgia, 3) vigilantism and 4) that trolls are nasty. Analysis also revealed that despite repertoire 01, identifying trolls is not a simple and straight-forward task. Similarly to any other rhetorical category, there are tensions inherent in posters accounts of nature and acceptability of trolling. Neither the category 'troll' nor the action of 'trolling' has a single, fixed meaning. Either action may be presented as desirable or undesirable, depending upon the aims of the poster at the time of posting.
Online newspapers (and other spaces) are increasingly seeking to utilise user-generated content alongside professionally developed material. However, this might leave websites increasingly vulnerable to trolls, who work to disrupt online communications in online spaces. Such behaviour can have serious consequences both in peoples online and offline lives, and for the development of coherent online communities. One means of controlling is through the manipulation of the online space to create social norms of polite behaviour through the founding of ‘imagined communities’ online.
Approaching the issue from a discursive psychological perspective, this paper draws upon comments published in two online British newspaper comment sections responding to the publication of an academic article on trolling. Imagined communities are shown to arise irrespective of the presence of the virtual infrastructure to support the development of these imagined communities.
Key features of imagined communities identified here are: individuation (as opposed to deindividuation); mutual influence between posters; shared history for both the users and the online space; the use of humour to cement social bonds. Analysis also revealed tensions in posters understanding of online and offline behaviours.
This research holds implications for understanding online spaces, and the interactions between users within these spaces.
This study rested the idea of habits as a form of goal-directed automatic behavior. Expanding on the idea that habits are mentally represented as associations between goals and actions, it was proposed that goals are capable of activating the habitual action. More specific, when habits are established (e.g., frequent cycling to the university), the very activation of the goal to act (e.g., having to attend lectures at the university) automatically evokes the habitual response (e.g., bicycle). Indeed, it was tested and confirmed that, when behavior is habitual, behavioral responses are activated automatically. in addition, the results of 3 experiments indicated that (a) the automaticity in habits is conditional on the presence of an active goal (cf. goal-dependent automaticity; J. A. Bargh, 1989), supporting the idea that habits are mentally represented as goal-action links, and (b) the formation of implementation intentions (i.e., the creation of a strong mental link between a goal and action) may simulate goal-directed automaticity in habits.
Online gaming market is thriving but accompanied with fierce competitions. Players' continued use of online games is critical for the success of online game providers. This study applies UTAUT2 as the research framework to identify the key determinants of social network game (SNG) players' continued use intention, and to explore the moderating effects of individual characters (such as age, gender, and user experience) on the proposed hypotheses as well. The research model is examined by analyzing 3919 valid empirical data collected among SNG players in China. The results suggest that social influence is the most important determinant of continuance intention to use SNG, followed by habit, fantasy, enjoyment, achievement and price value. User experience and age are not moderators, whereas gender exerts moderating effects on the paths from social influence, perceived enjoyment and price value to continuance intention.
The increasing emergence of pervasive information systems requires a clearer understanding of the underlying characteristics in relation to user acceptance. Based on the integration of UTAUT2 and three pervasiveness constructs, we derived a comprehensive research model to account for pervasive information systems. Data collected from 346 participants in an online survey was analyzed to test the developed model using structural equation modeling and taking into account multigroup analysis. The results confirm the applicability of the integrated UTAUT2 model to measure pervasiveness. Implications for research and practice are discussed together with future research opportunities.
Research on the effectiveness of gamification has proliferated over the last few years, but the underlying motivational mechanisms have only recently become object of empirical research. It has been suggested that when perceived as informational, gamification elements, such as points, levels and leaderboards, may afford feelings of competence and hence enhance intrinsic motivation and promote performance gains. We conducted a 2 × 4 online experiment that systematically examined how points, leaderboards and levels, as well as participants' goal causality orientation influence intrinsic motivation, competence and performance (tag quantity and quality) in an image annotation task. Compared to a control condition, game elements did not significantly affect competence or intrinsic motivation, irrespective of participants' causality orientation. However, participants' performance did not mirror their intrinsic motivation, as points, and especially levels and leaderboard led to a significantly higher amount of tags generated compared to the control group. These findings suggest that in this particular study context, points, levels and leaderboards functioned as extrinsic incentives, effective only for promoting performance quantity.
Interest in the problem of method biases has a long history in the behavioral sciences. Despite this, a comprehensive summary of the potential sources of method biases and how to control for them does not exist. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to examine the extent to which method biases influence behavioral research results, identify potential sources of method biases, discuss the cognitive processes through which method biases influence responses to measures, evaluate the many different procedural and statistical techniques that can be used to control method biases, and provide recommendations for how to select appropriate procedural and statistical remedies for different types of research settings.
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience significant challenges in community engagement and social activities, yet they have strong interests in video games. Thus, there has been increasing interest in understanding potentially positive and negative effects of video games in this population. However, research has not yet examined the perspectives of individuals with ASD themselves on this topic. The purpose of this study was to use qualitative methods to examine the preferences and motivations for video game play among adults with ASD. Individual interviews were conducted with 58 adults with ASD, and responses were coded through an iterative and collaborative process. Several themes were identified, including perceived benefits of video game use (e.g., social connection, stress reduction) as well as perceived negative effects (e.g., time use, addictive potential). Participants also noted both positive and negative aspects of game design that affect their overall enjoyment. The most frequent all-time favorite video game genres were Role-Playing (31%) and Action-Adventure (19%). These qualitative findings enhance our understanding of video game use from the direct perspectives of individuals with ASD, and suggest a need for incorporating these perspectives in future quantitative studies on positive and negative aspects of game use in this population.
During recent years, the practice of adding game design to non-game services has gained a relatively large amount of attention. Popular discussion connects gamification to increased user engagement, service profitability, goal commitment and the overall betterment of various behavioral outcomes. However, there is still an absence of a coherent and ample body of empirical evidence that would confirm such expectations. To this end, this paper reports the results of a 2 year (1+1 year – between-group) field experiment in gamifying a service by implementing a game mechanic called ‘badges’. During the experiment a pre-implementation group (N=1410) was monitored for 1 year. After the implementation, the post-implementation (the gamified condition) group (N=1579) was monitored for another full year. Results show that users in the gamified condition were significantly more likely to post trade proposals, carry out transactions, comment on proposals and generally use the service in a more active way.
Originating in 1996, Pokemon has become the second most successful game-based franchise in the world and arguably one of the best-known examples of transmedia storytelling in youth media today. Based around creator Satoshi Tajiri's love of insect collecting, Pokemon imagines a world where wild creatures exist to be collected, trained and battle with one another. Such an ideology, simultaneously embracing both the conservation and consumption of nature, is emblematic of the larger challenges Japan has had to negotiate as a nation trying to balance economic development and environmental protection. In this way, this article argues that, when subjected to textual analysis, the Pokemon franchise can function as vernacular theory, interrogating the relationship between environmentalism, materialism and sustainable development, a series of popular youth media texts engaging with issues and subjects that are usually reserved for academia.