For whom does flow not enhance online gamer loyalty?

Abstract

PurposeFlow, or total concentration with intrinsic enjoyment, has been recognized as being able to enhance online gamer loyalty. However, some gamers who experience flow do not exhibit strong loyalty, posing the vital research question asking for whom flow would not enhance loyalty. Limited knowledge on this issue may lead game providers to assume that flow is influential in strengthening loyalty among all gamers, thus leading to suboptimal resource allocation and reduced effectiveness in retaining gamers. The purpose of the paper is to examine how gaming experience and gaming intensity moderate the impact of flow on online gamer loyalty.Design/methodology/approachIn the paper, the hypotheses were tested using responses from 273 gamers.FindingsThe findings show that flow and gaming experience positively impact gamer loyalty. Gaming experience reduces the positive relationship between flow and gamer loyalty. However, gaming intensity does not reduce.Practical implicationsGame providers should focus on creating a flow experience to strengthen the loyalty of gamers with short-gaming experience. However, game providers should devise other means to strengthen loyalty among gamers with long-gaming experience.Originality/valueThe study challenged the assumption of flow theory, i.e. that flow always determines loyalty. Instead, the paper offers a moderator – gaming experience – which sets a boundary condition for this theory. Flow works well only among gamers with relatively short-gaming experience. The study also extended the literature on gaming experience by uniquely indicating its attenuating effect on the relation between flow and loyalty.

Friend-connecting affordances: playing online games to contact friends

“…We believed that gaming history can effectively capture the essence of this concept and therefore chose to use this term. Gaming history can weaken the well-known strong effect of gaming flow on game loyalty (Pham et al, 2022), indicating its prominent moderating role.…”

“…Specifically, gaming intensity could weaken the impact of enjoyment and perceived usefulness on game loyalty intention (Molinillo et al, 2020b). Moreover, gaming intensity reflects exposure to game content stimuli (Pham et al, 2022), or increased comprehensiveness of usage (Limayem et al, 2007). Extensive exposure should desensitize the influence of stimuli (Bushman and Anderson, 2009), i.e.…”

“…Gaming history represents the number of years spent playing a game (Pham et al, 2022). All things being equal, more years offer players more time to engage in group gameplay, get to know more players and make more friends.…”

Flow and performance: a quantitative study of elicitation modeling in a piano performance perspective

“…Flow, a concept extensively explored across various disciplines such as sports ( Kim and Ko, 2019 ; Goddard et al, 2023 ), dance ( Łucznik and May, 2021 ), games ( Pham et al, 2022 ), and chess ( Tozman et al, 2017 ), has garnered multidisciplinary attention. In the field of music, particularly in the realm of music performance ( O’Neill, 1999 ; Spahn et al, 2021 ; Antonini Philippe et al, 2022 ), music listening ( Diaz, 2013 ; Karmonik et al, 2016 ; Loepthien and Leipold, 2022 ), music composition ( MacDonald et al, 2006 ; Chirico et al, 2015 ), and music education ( Custodero, 2002 ; Bernard, 2009 ), exhibit a pronounced inclination toward flow.…”