Understanding continuance intention to play online games: roles of self-expressiveness, self-congruity, self-efficacy, and perceived risk

The current study investigates the motivation to explore the expansive possibilities online games provide for identity development, in addition to the widely studied gaming consumption value motivations. This study develops an integrated framework from the perspective of the identity, self-congruity, self-efficacy, and consumption value theories for a holistic appreciation of online gaming motivations. Data were collected from active online gamers and structural equation modelling was employed to test the hypotheses. The findings suggest that self-expressiveness positively influences continued intentions to play games and, in turn, is impacted by self-congruity. Self-efficacy is also found to impact users’ continuance intention for online games. Further, the results re-affirm the importance of hedonic (perceived enjoyment) and utilitarian (perceived usefulness) consumption values on gamers’ continuance intentions in an online gaming context. Through multi-group analysis, this study also highlights the influence of perceived risk in shaping the continuance intentions. Findings suggest that the impact of perceived enjoyment, perceived usefulness, self-expressiveness, and self-congruity on continuance intention is enhanced in the presence of high risk; the reverse holds true for self-efficacy. The key practical implications of the findings are discussed.