Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) and Socio-Emotional Wellbeing

doi:10.1016/j.chb.2017.04.008

Computers in Human Behavior

Volume 73, August 2017, Pages 451-458

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.04.008 Get rights and content

Highlights

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Quality of guild play wast mostly related to older adults' socio-emotional wellbeing.
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Participating in well-organized guilds seems to improve socio-emotional wellbeing.
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Enjoyment of relationships also contributed to older adults' wellbeing.
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Many older adults developed meaningful online relationships with game friends.
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It would be difficult for older adults to integrate online friends into real life.

Abstract

Expanding and building on our previous study, the current study mainly explored the degree to which older adults' social interactions in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) are associated with four socio-emotional factors. A total of 222 older World of Warcraft players, recruited online, completed a Web questionnaire. Consistent with the findings of the previous study, older adults' socio-emotional wellbeing was associated with the quality of guild play and enjoyment of relationship. Socio-emotional wellbeing was not associated with the amount of gameplay, intensity of interaction, network level and social motivation for playing MMORPGs. In addition, the findings also indicated that a large number of older adults developed meaningful online relationships with their game friends, but that it would be difficult for them to integrate these online friends into their ‘real’ lives.

Section snippets

Social interaction and older adults

Social interaction (also referred to as social engagement, social involvement, social connectedness, or social participation) is an important component of successful aging (Ristau, 2011). Social and mental wellbeing may be more important than physical health to overall wellbeing (Giummarra et al., 2007, Lewis, 2014). Baumeister and Leary (1995) pointed out that belongingness is a fundamental human need. Having numerous direct ties to people offers many opportunities for valuable resources (

Justification of research method and participants

An online survey is an effective way to receive appropriately large numbers of responses due to the geographic dispersion of WoW players. Williams, Consalvo, Caplan, and Yee (2009) pointed that self-selection sampling is the most effective method of gathering data from the population of MMORPG players. Shen and Williams (2011) examined the connections between MMORPGs use and psychological well-being by combining self-reported data of EverQuest II (a MMORPG) players and their behavioural data

Results

The focus of this study was to test the hypotheses and examine how strongly each social interaction component is related to older adults' social-emotional wellbeing. In this section, we present the results of the descriptive and two-stage hierarchical linear regression analyses and the values of Cohen's f². Due to space limitations, we report the results for each model as a whole rather than for the specific variables in each model (see Table 1, Table 2, Table 3, Table 4, Table 5). As a

Discussion

The values of Cohen's f² indicated that the quality of guild play generated the biggest effect sizes on loneliness, depression, social support, and belongingness. Loneliness and depression were mostly predicted by satisfaction with guild mates; social support was predicted by guild leadership; and belongingness was predicted by the quality of guild play as a whole. This phenomenon could result from the membership of individual guilds. Similar values and player styles, repeated collaboration and

Conclusion

This study conceptualized older adults' social interactions in MMORPGs into four components and investigated the relationships between each component and older adults' social-emotional wellbeing. Consistent with the findings of previous research, older adults' socio-emotional wellbeing was associated with the quality of guild play and enjoyment of relationship rather than the amount of gameplay, intensity of interaction, network level, and social motivation for playing MMORPGs. A large number

Acknowledgement

This work was supported by AGE-WELL NCE Inc., a national research network supporting research, networking, commercialization, knowledge mobilization and capacity building activities in technology and aging to improve the quality of life of Canadians and contribute to the economic impact of Canada. AGE-WELL is a member of the Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE), a Government of Canada program that funds partnerships between universities, industry, government and not-for-profit organizations.

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Full length articleMassively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) and Socio-Emotional Wellbeing

Highlights

Abstract

Section snippets

Social interaction and older adults

Justification of research method and participants

Results

Discussion

Conclusion

Acknowledgement

Computers in Human Behavior

Computers in Human Behavior

Computers in Human Behavior

Computers in Human Behavior

A critical review of the literature on social and leisure activity and wellbeing in later life

Ageing & Society

The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation

Psychological Bulletin

The association of social relationships with risk of incident mild cognitive impairment in older adults

Social and emotional patterns in adulthood: Support for socioemotional selectivity theory

Psychology and Aging

Social and emotional aging

Annual Review of Psychology

Understanding social interaction in world of warcraft

Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences

Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis

Psychological Bulletin

The social connectedness of older adults: A national profile

American Sociological Review

Never too old to play: The appeal of digital games to an older audience

Games and Culture

Designing meaningful play within the psycho-social context of older adults

Collective solitude and social networks in world of warcraft

The relation of social support to depression in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games

Journal of Applied Social Psychology

Loneliness can make you sick: Alone but not lonely

Patterns of technology use among older adults with and without disabilities

The Gerontologist

The concept of health in old age: Views of older people and health professionals

Australian Health Review

Social support and successful aging: Investigating the relationships between lifetime cognitive change and life satisfaction

Journal of Individual Difference

The social capital of older people

Ageing & Society

A short-form measure of loneliness

Journal of Personality Assessment

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

Cyberpsycholgy& Behavior

Late-life social activity and cognitive decline in old age

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society

Daily well-being of older adults with friends and family

Psychology and Aging

Measuring belongingness: The social connectedness and the social assurance scales

Journal of Counseling Psychology

The role of the social engagement in the definition of successful ageing among Alaska native elders in Bristol Bay, Alaska

Psychology & Developing Societies

Full length article
Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPGs) and Socio-Emotional Wellbeing