Motivations to Participate in Gaming and Esports: An Exploratory Study on The Influence of Participant Gender

Abstract

The rapid growth of gaming and esports since 2015 demands an investigation of the habits of those who consume and engage with (i.e., participate, view, attend events) this emerging space. As previous research has suggested, women and men may engage with video games for different reasons, and to better understand this occurrence, the current study addresses whether their gaming and esports participation motivations vary. As a result, this exploratory study employed a survey design with a previously validated scale used to measure motivation differences between men and women for traditional sport and exercise spaces. In addition, insights from Hamari and Sjöblom study were used to construct the survey instrument and adapt it to gaming environments. The researchers used an exploratory factor analysis to examine the data and determine preliminary factors relating to esports and gaming motivations. Additionally, gender differences were also assessed. Implications for the gaming industry are discussed as well as future research directions.