Exploring the Links Between Personality Traits and Motivations to Play Online Games

Abstract

The present study explores the links between personality traits and motivations to play online games. We identified the underlying dimensions of motivations to play online games, examined how personality traits predict motivation, and investigated how personality traits predict online gaming behavior (i.e., playing time and preference for game genres). Factor analyses identified five motivational factors: relationships, adventure, escapism, relaxation, and achievement. The regression analyses indicated that two personality traits, extraversion and agreeableness, predicted various motivations; however, personality traits did not affect the playing time and game genre preference.

Introduction

In recent years, online gaming has become one of the most rapidly growing industries. In 2006, it was predicted that the online gaming market would reach $13 billion by 2011,¹ but it had already reached $15 billion in 2009 and was expected to grow to $20 billion by 2010.² Korea is one of the world's major online gaming markets¹; it was worth $1.8 billion in 2007 and was expected to grow to $3.2 billion in 2010.³ The Korean online gaming market can provide a snapshot of the world gaming market. In Korea, watching television, going to the cinema, and online gaming are the three major leisure activities. Moreover, 70% of video game players in Korea are online gamers,⁴ suggesting that online gaming is worth investigation.

As online gaming has evolved into an emerging form of social media,⁵ previous studies have investigated the motivations behind online games. Based on Bartle's⁶ four types of Multi-User Dungeon players, Yee⁷ identified five factors that influence a person's likelihood to play online games: relationships, immersion, grief, achievement, and leadership. In a subsequent study, Yee⁸ added other motivational factors: escapism and learning. Yee⁹ ultimately identified 10 motivational factors for online gaming: advancement, mechanics, competition, socializing, relationship, teamwork, discovery, role-playing, customization, and escapism. Because of the large number of factors, Yee⁹ performed an additional factor analysis and grouped the 10 factors into 3 main components: achievement (advancement, mechanics, and competition), social (socializing, relationships, and teamwork), and immersion (discovery, role-playing, customization, and escapism). In contrast, Przybylski¹⁰ identified autonomy, competence, and relatedness as psychologically satisfying motivations for online gaming. Although these studies of motivational factors were performed in the United States, studies performed in other countries have revealed similar patterns, with slight variations. In the United Kingdom, competition, sociability, interest, and relaxation emerged as the motivations to play online games,¹¹ and in Germany, competition/learning, escapism, playing solo, exploration, leadership, anger/taunting, community, performance, and game mechanics were found to be the motivations.¹²

Previous studies have identified various motivations for playing online games, but little is known about the sources of these motivations. Recently, Jeng and Teng¹³ have observed that personality traits are the likely sources of motivation for online gaming.

To explain this likelihood, an expectancy value model can be used to reveal a relationship between personality traits and gaming motivations. Palmgreen and Rayburn^14,15 developed an expectancy value model for media gratification and consumption. They found that the attributes of a person's belief about a media object interact with his or her evaluation of these attributes, thus influencing the gratification sought and further increasing media consumption. This model can be used to argue that certain personality traits cause people to value certain attributes of gaming that result in the gratification they seek, which further fuels their motivation to play games. Personality theories suggest that personality reflects an individual's needs. For example, extraversion reflects an individual's need for social interactions.¹⁶ If people believe that certain games provide opportunities for social interactions and if they highly value these opportunities, then the gratification these people obtain from playing such games fuels their motivation to play them. Moreover, personality is stable¹⁷ and thus can repeatedly formulate the motivation needed to play the games.

Jeng and Teng's¹³ study used Yee's⁹ typology, which is useful but limited. Because the pertinent literature provides various motivations for playing online games, further research is needed to investigate how personality motivates online gaming by including more detailed and specific motivations. Such research would positively contribute to the literature in two ways. First, this research could replicate, confirm, or suggest potential modifications to the current findings. Second, this research could provide new motivations and links between personality traits and motivations, which would advance our understanding of the psychology of users in cyberspace (i.e., online games).

Thus, this study investigated how personality traits motivate online game play—that is, how personality traits and gaming motivations are linked. This study appears similar to Jeng and Teng's study.¹³ However, prior to linking personality traits to motivations, the present study identified a wider range of motivations than those discussed by Jeng and Teng.¹³ Additionally, to provide a more complete picture of how personality traits affect online gaming motivations, we also attempted to determine which personality dimension predicts a person's overall online game play and which personality dimension predicts a person's preference for specific genres of online games. Research on the relationships between personality traits, motivations, gaming behavior, and gaming preference can increase our knowledge of “who plays what and why.”

This study is consistent with other studies on motivation and online games, such as Yee's study.⁹ However, this study's contribution to the literature emerges from the detailed listing of gaming motivations and predictions of such motivations using personality traits.

Method

Participants

Although online games are popular across different ages and genders, in Korea, they are particularly popular among college students.¹⁸ Thus, we chose to investigate college students, who comprise a high proportion of online gamers in Korea. The survey was administered at five comprehensive, co-ed universities in the capital region of Korea during a 2-week period between June 7 and June 18, 2010. The capital region is composed of two metropolitan cities (Incheon and the capital city, Seoul) and one province (Kyunggi), which is where 49% of Koreans live. Because the college students in the region generally come from all over the country, they are representative of the Korean college student population. The questionnaires were distributed during elective mass communication classes composed of students of various majors, and the respondents were asked to fill in the questionnaires when the classes were dismissed.

A total of 556 questionnaires were distributed, and responses from 524 complete questionnaires were used for the analyses. Of the 524 respondents, 47.6% were male. All of the respondents were between 17 and 28 years of age: 42.3% were 20 or under, 43.9% were between 21 and 24 years, and 13.8% were 25 or over. On average, the respondents had a monthly family income of US$1,454, which is about the average for a typical Korean family, providing preliminary support for sample representativeness.

Moreover, 68% of the respondents had played online games for 5–10 years, and 52% of the respondents played online games for 30 min or more daily. Eleven genres of online games were provided, and respondents were asked to choose their favorite genre. Sports (15.9%) and role playing (15.1%) were the respondents' favorite online game genres, followed by puzzles (9.3%), strategy (9.1%), and simulation (8.2%). Ten dummy (zero-one) variables were used to represent the respondents' preference for the 11 genres. For example, one dummy variable denoted whether a respondent chose role-playing games as his/her favorite (“0” representing “no” and “1” representing “yes”).

Measures

To measure personality traits, the Ten Item Personality Inventory (TIPI)¹⁹ was used. The TIPI is a 10-item measure of the Big Five personality dimensions: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and openness to experience. The TIPI was developed in response to the need to measure the Big Five personality dimensions under time constraints. A study²⁰ comparing several brief measures of personality has suggested that the TIPI achieved slightly better validity than the other measures. Although more evidence is needed to confirm this finding, we chose to use the TIPI as a tool to quickly assess the Big Five personality traits, because long questionnaires are likely to reduce the concentration needed by the respondents to complete the questionnaires.

The items used to measure motivations were based on previous research^7–12 and interviews with college students. In addition to using the motivation measurement items from previous research, we conducted personal interviews with 10 college students. As demonstrated in the previous studies among United States, United Kingdom, and Germany, motivations can be different across cultures. Thus, we decided to complement the existing measurement by conducting interviews with gamers rather than simply replicate the established typology of online gaming motivations. Sherry et al.²¹ demonstrated the usefulness of interviews as a method to generate measurement items by developing video gaming motivations based on a series of focus group interviews. Thus, both top-down and bottom-up modes were used to develop measurement items. From reviews of previous research and interviewing, a comprehensive pool of 81 measurement items was generated. Because responding to 81 items might cause fatigue for respondents, we attempted to reduce the number of items. We asked 50 college students to check the items that explained their online gaming motivations. The few items that were checked more than five times were selected. This criterion eliminated the miscellaneous items and increased response validity while retaining sufficient items for the subsequent factor analysis. We performed a t test and found that the selected items (n=34) were checked significantly more often than those not selected (n=47) (17.12 times vs. 1.60 times, t=9.17, p=0.00), confirming that the selected items were more frequently checked. Moreover, we removed items that did not apply to all online games, such as “the game characters are gorgeous.”

Results

We performed a factor analysis on the identified five factors (relationships, adventure, escapism, relaxation, and achievement, as listed in Table 1) when the eigenvalues exceeded 1. The selected factors accounted for the majority (71%) of the total variance. The Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin value was 0.86, exceeding 0.80 and indicating the appropriateness of using the technique for the factor analysis. This appropriateness was further supported by the significant result from Bartlett's test of sphericity (χ²=5419.20, p<0.01). Cronbach's alpha coefficients ranged from 0.78 to 0.87, indicating sufficient reliability in the measures.

Table 1.

Motivations for Playing Online Games

	Relationship	Adventure	Escapism	Relaxation	Achievement
To become intimate with friends	0.85	0.06	0.13	0.10	0.04
To generate something to talk with people	0.85	0.19	0.09	0.04	0.05
To associate with other people	0.80	0.13	0.08	−0.03	0.21
Because many people around me play	0.79	0.06	0.06	0.20	0.09
To make new friends	0.64	0.29	0.15	−0.09	0.29
To enjoy new challenges	0.16	0.85	0.20	0.11	0.17
To enjoy new experiences	0.17	0.85	0.19	0.10	0.10
To play well on difficult games	0.15	0.74	0.18	0.13	0.23
To enjoy adventure	0.14	0.69	0.06	0.04	0.37
To escape from the burden of study	0.07	0.11	0.81	0.21	0.02
To escape from daily life	0.14	0.24	0.78	0.01	0.10
To forget complicated things	0.04	0.19	0.75	0.27	0.04
To take my anger out on	0.18	0.06	0.69	−0.03	0.20
Because it is fun	0.07	0.10	0.09	0.91	0.13
Because it is interesting	0.06	0.11	0.04	0.91	0.12
To ease suspense and stress	0.07	0.07	0.38	0.65	−0.02
To demonstrate my game skills	0.10	0.30	0.12	0.09	0.79
To make sure and boast my game skills	0.26	0.14	0.18	−0.01	0.78
To acquire and polish game skills	0.12	0.26	0.03	0.20	0.72
Eigenvalues	6.44	2.40	1.92	1.64	1.11
Variance (%)	33.91	12.64	10.08	8.85	5.81
Cumulative variance (%)	33.91	46.55	56.63	65.28	71.09
Cronbach's α	0.87	0.87	0.81	0.83	0.78

Note: Shaded cells indicate the items loaded on the factors as listed in the first row.

Factor 1 represents relationship, which reveals the desire to become intimate and relate to friends and other people. Factor 2 represents adventure and describes the craving for new experiences and challenges. Factor 3, escapism, expresses the aspiration to avoid the burden of daily life. Factor 4, relaxation, refers to the longing for amusement and relaxation. Factor 5, achievement, is related to the desire to advance gaming skills.

We used multiple regression analysis to examine how personality traits predict online gaming motivations and behavior (playing time per day and the number of years playing online games). The five motivations for online gaming, playing time per day, and the number of years playing online games served as the dependent variables, and the five personality traits represented the independent variables. Gender and age were used as the control variables. Table 2 lists the regression analysis results.

Table 2.

Sources of Motivations for Playing Online Games

	RS	AD	ES	RX	AC	TPD	NY
Extraversion	0.09	0.23^**	0.25^**	0.40^**	0.23^**	0.12	0.04
Agreeableness	0.30^**	0.37^**	0.18^**	0.12	0.28^**	0.08	−0.03
Conscientiousness	0.05	−0.02	0.03	−0.10	−0.03	−0.08	−0.03
Emotional stability	−0.06	0.06	−0.10	0.09	−0.04	−0.09	0.02
Openness to experiences	−0.07	0.09	−0.08	0.08	−0.05	0.01	−0.03
Gender	−0.19^**	−0.04	0.11	−0.06	−0.04	−0.21^**	−0.22^**
Age	0.09	0.03	0.15^**	−0.03	0.05	0.05	−0.04
R ²	0.21	0.31	0.17	0.27	0.23	0.12	0.04
Adj. R²	0.20	0.30	0.16	0.26	0.22	0.10	0.03

Note: ^**p<0.01.

RS, relationship; AD, adventure; ES, escapism; RX, relaxation; AC, achievement; TPD, time per day; NY, number of years.

Overall, all the regression models were significant at a level of p<0.01. Here, we will discuss the analytical results in the columns of Table 2. Agreeableness was positively related to the relationship motivation (β=0.30, p<0.01), and gender also had impact on the relationship motivation (β=−0.19, p<0.01). Extraversion (β=0.23, p<0.01) and agreeableness (β=0.37, p<0.01) were significantly linked to the adventure motivation. Extraversion (β=0.25, p<0.01) and agreeableness (β=0.18, p<0.01) were also positively related to the escapism motivation. Moreover, age was positively related to the escapism motivation (β=0.15, p<0.01). Extraversion could predict the relaxation motivation (β=0.40, p<0.01). Extraversion (β=0.23, p<0.01) and agreeableness (β=0.28, p<0.01) were positively related to the achievement motivation. Additionally, we observed that gender was significantly related to playing time per day (β=−0.21, p<0.01) and the number of years playing online games (β=−0.22, p<0.01).

We also performed logistic regression analyses to test whether personality traits could predict preference for specific genres of online games. However, the analytical results indicated that the five personality traits did not predict a preference for specific genres of online games (Exp(β) ranging between 0.63 and 1.81, p>0.05).

Discussion

Our investigation substantiated the influence of personality traits on motivations to play online games. Agreeableness and extraversion were identified as strong motivation predictors for playing online games. However, personality traits do not seem to predict online gaming behavior (in terms of overall game playing time and preference for specific genres of online games). These findings suggest that personality traits are only relevant to the reasons why people value online gaming. However, this argument requires further research for confirmation.

This study found that gender was related to relationship motivation, that is, female gamers exhibited a stronger motivation to build and maintain relationships in games than male gamers. This gender difference is consistent with our expectation²² that females generally value relationships more than males. Moreover, this study found that age was positively associated with the escapism motivation for playing online games. This finding is interesting, because it suggests that the burdens of life and responsibilities increase with age, motivating individuals to escape and take a break from the real world. Online games can immerse gamers and thus are good outlets to fulfill the need to escape.

Notably, the findings of the present study differ from the results of Jeng and Teng.¹³ Both studies demonstrated the overall influence of personality on motivation, but differences emerged in the details. One possible explanation for these differences may be the cultural differences between Taiwanese and Korean college students. According to a study²³ that compared college culture between the two countries, the Taiwanese college culture is less hierarchical and collective than the culture of Korean college students. The cultural and personality issues are intriguing topics that merit further study.

Moreover, the present study revealed both similarities and differences in motivations compared with the previous studies. Adventure in the present study is similar to Yee's⁹ discovery motivation. Relationship and escapism motivations are identical in both studies. Achievement in the present study resembles the advancement motivation in Yee's study. Therefore, we claim that the factors that emerged in the present study are fairly consistent with Yee's motivation categories. The relaxation motivation is a component of the escapism motivation in Yee's study,⁹ but in the present study, the relaxation motivation is separate from the escapism motivation. Such incongruence with the literature requires further study to examine whether the relaxation motivation is part of the escapism motivation or if they are unconnected motivations.

Our results show that certain personality traits influence gaming motivations. These findings conform to the expectancy value model of Palmgreen and Rayburn.^14,15 Extraverted people may find that online games are a good medium for interacting with others, because in games they share common objectives and experiences that facilitate interaction. Thus, extraverted people believe that they can obtain gratification, influencing their motivation for online gaming. Moreover, agreeable people enjoy the social behavior and interactions.²⁴ In online games, wherein social interaction and cooperation are important, agreeable people are most likely to receive positive social feedback from other players for being nice and helpful, which in turn would fuel agreeable persons' motivation to play. Agreeable people may find online games to be a good way to engage in social behavior, allowing them to express warmth by sending virtual gifts and helping others accomplish their gaming goals. Thus, agreeable people believe that they can obtain gratification in online games, which motivates them to play online games repeatedly. Our investigation contributes to the expectancy value model by applying the model to explain the relation between personality and gaming motivations. This application provides evidence of the applicability of the model to certain new media (i.e., online games).

Results from this study can provide insights to online gaming companies. We found that highly extraverted and highly agreeable people have strong motivations to play online games. Thus, these people are likely to have a strong tendency to respond to marketing efforts (e.g., advertising or free trials) from online game companies, that is, highly extraverted and highly agreeable people are the most promising market segment for game companies.

This study used a survey method and a cross-sectional design. This approach has been frequently adopted by previous online gaming studies. However, this approach was limited in its ability to directly examine causality, limiting the ability of the findings to predict causality among the study constructs. Future studies could design experiments or longitudinal studies to provide evidence that may corroborate or refute the present findings.

We did not find that personality traits could predict gaming behavior in terms of overall online game playing time and years of online gaming. Future studies could investigate whether personality traits influence other aspects of gaming behavior. Moreover, we did not find evidence that personality traits predict a person's preference for game genres. Future studies could explore whether personality traits predict gamers' preference for other game characteristics (e.g., number of game subscribers). Research on “who plays what and why” could provide a more complete picture to aid in understanding gamers' personalities and motivations.

Footnotes

Disclosure Statement

No competing financial interests exist.

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