May I continue or should I stop? the effects of regulatory focus and message framings on video game players’ self-control

Ho, Shu-Hsun and Putthiwanit, Chutinon and Lin, Chia-Yin (2011): May I continue or should I stop? the effects of regulatory focus and message framings on video game players’ self-control. Published in: International Journal of Business and Social Science , Vol. 2, No. 12 (22 June 2011): pp. 194-200.

Abstract

Two types of motivations exist in terms of regulatory focus: a promotion orientation concerned with advancement and achievement and a prevention orientation concerned with safety and security. The central premise of this research is that promotion-focused and prevention-focused players differ in their sensitivity to message frames and therefore respond with different levels of self-control. This study adopted a 2 (message frames: positive vs. negative) × 2 (regulatory focus: promotion vs. prevention) between-subjects design; the results confirmed the hypotheses that, for promotion-focused players, negative messages are significantly effective in preventing them from becoming addicted to the games; meanwhile, for prevention-focused players, positive messages significantly influenced players, leading them to become addicted. Hence, video games’ negative and addiction-related messages should be enhanced whereas positive messages should be cautiously released.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Regulatory focus, regulatory fit, message frames, self-control, video game
• Subjects: M - Business Administration and Business Economics ; Marketing ; Accounting ; Personnel Economics > M3 - Marketing and Advertising > M31 - Marketing

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