Poster #141 - Linkages between Self-Esteem, Video Game Motives, Preferences, and Time Playing among Middle Childhood-aged Students

• In Event: Poster Session 14

Abstract

Children’s motives for game play and preferences for certain digital games have been examined via motivational models, such as those concerning uses and gratifications (Greenberg et al., 2010; Sherry et al., 2003). In the context of gaming, this theoretical perspective suggests that time spent playing digital games reflects gratifications sought (i.e., arousal, challenge, competition, diversion, fantasy, or social interaction; Sherry et al., 2003) from a given game genre played (e.g., puzzle, action; Sherry et al., 2003) which may then influence game player’s self-esteem. In fact, there is reason to believe that players’ motives and preferences for certain types of digital games is related to self-esteem (von der Heiden et al., 2019). For example, players may turn to digital game play to satisfy basic psychological needs (see Ruggiero, 2000; Ryan et al., 2006), which has ramifications for their self-esteem (Przybylski et al., 2010; Ryan et al., 2006). Thus, by identifying differences in game motives, it may be possible to identify children who prefer certain genres (Sherry & Lucas, 2003) and to determine whether they experience more or less self-esteem than other players with different genre preferences. This study was designed to examine these linkages among children within the middle-childhood period which remains relatively understudied in the game effects literature (Blumberg et al., 2019). Specifically, we examined the relationship between digital gaming habits and self-esteem during middle childhood with specific references to linkages between self-esteem and (a) reasons/motives for playing, (b) preferred game genres, and (c) amount of time spent playing. Participants included 92 children aged nine through 12 who were administered a set of web-based surveys that assessed their digital game uses and gratifications, genre preferences, hours spent gaming per day, and global self-esteem. Results of a hierarchical analysis indicated a 24.5% overlap in the relationship of digital game motives, genre preferences, and time spent gaming in predicting children’s self-esteem, when controlling for age (R2 = .072). Further, children citing reasons for game play as interacting socially with fellow gamers (i.e., social interaction; β = .26, p < .05) or to experience the excitement that comes with playing the game (i.e., arousal; β = .34, p < .05), were likely to report higher self-esteem. Those who reported competition (β = -.37, p < .05) as their reason for play were likely to report lower self-esteem. These results support the hypothesis that differences in children’s motives for digital game play are differentially related to their self-esteem. Notably, time spent gaming and genre preferences were not significant individual predictors of children’s self-esteem. These findings warrant replication among a larger sample to better contribute to our understanding of how motives for gameplay may be related to self-esteem among players representing the middle childhood period.

Authors

• Ravi Rughani, Fordham University
  Presenting Author

• Fran C Blumberg, Fordham University