The Role of Individuals’ Need for Online Social Interactions and Interpersonal Incompetence in Digital Game Addiction

ABSTRACT

Since online digital game addiction became one of the serious social computing issues related to public health, there has been an unprecedented need to explore and understand online digital game addiction from a psychosocial perspective. Extant studies have empirically tested the effects of as well as the relationship among prominent psychological distresses such as depression, loneliness and aggression on game addiction. Likewise, previous studies have also empirically established that social interaction may take a different form and alter the social exchanges in ways that may be particularly attractive to those who are lonely. This way, online social interaction within the interfaces of digital games such as MMORPGs can become a substitute for real-life social interaction because of the online anonymity and lack of physical presence which allow users to control social interaction. However, a few studies have explored the relationships among individuals’ need for online social interaction, interpersonal incompetence and self-regulation (control) and their effects on game addiction. In addition, the mediating role of individuals’ need for online social interaction in online digital game addiction has neither been proposed nor empirically tested. The main purpose of this study is to examine digital game addiction from the perspectives of individuals’ need for online social interaction, interpersonal incompetence, self-regulation and loneliness. We believe that the findings of this study will offer new insights to policymakers in dealing with the issues of digital game addiction. More specifically, the purpose of this study is to understand the mediation effect of individuals’ need for online social interaction on game addiction.

Additional information

Funding

The research of the second and third authors have been supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant funded by the Korean Government (NRF-2017S1A3A2066149).

Notes on contributors

Sarbottam Bhagat

Sarbottam Bhagat is a PhD student in the Department of Information Technology and Decision Sciences at the University of North Texas. He is currently pursuing his doctorate degree in Business Computer Information Systems, and is focused on his research interest such as privacy, security, gaming addiction, social media, blockchain and knowledge sharing. Sarbottam also holds an MBA from Washburn University School of Business, and a BBA from Tribhuvan University (Nepal). He has also been inducted into the Beta Gamma Sigma Honors - an international honor society that recognizes the most outstanding students of business.

Eui Jun Jeong

Eui Jun Jeong is an associate professor in the Department of Digital Culture & Contents at Konkuk University, Seoul Korea. He received his PhD from Michigan State University. His research has focused on gaming effects in education, advertising, consumer behavior, and HCI. His papers have been published in refereed journals such as Journal of Advertising, Computers in Human Behavior, and CyberPsychology Behavior & Social Networking.

Dan J. Kim

Dan J. Kim is a Fulbright Sr. researcher and professor of Information Technology and Decision Sciences at University of North Texas. His research interests are in multidisciplinary areas such as information security and privacy, information assurance, and trust in electronic commerce. His research has been published or is forthcoming in more than 150 articles in refereed journals, including ISR, JMIS, JAIS, EJIS, CACM, DSS, IJHCI and others.