Disordered gaming: the interplay between user-avatar bond and sexual minority status

ABSTRACT

Online gamers represent themselves virtually through their in-game avatar, providing opportunities for connection and self-expression. Prior research indicates associations between aspects of the user-avatar bond (UAB) and more intensive gaming involvement. However, experiences may vary based on individual differences like sexual minority status (i.e. LGBTIQ+), warranting further investigation. Thus, the present study examined whether UAB profiles varied for heterosexual versus non-heterosexual gamers, to elucidate potential discrepancies in avatar engagement and gaming experiences related to sexual orientation. The study comprised an Australian community sample of 488 players (48.2% women, 73.3% heterosexual, M^age = 31.6 years) of Massive Multiplayer Online games. An online survey assessed demographic characteristics, user-avatar bond (UAB), and disordered gaming – which was additionally measured after six months (n = 270). Latent profile analysis revealed the presence of four UAB profiles: Compensated, Differentiated, Identified, and Moderate gamers. There was no association between one’s UAB profile and their sexual orientation. No interaction was observed between sexual orientation, UAB profile, and disordered gaming behaviour. However, differentiated gamers (characterised by weaker UAB connection) displayed significantly lower disordered gaming scores cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Findings highlight variations in how heterosexual and non-heterosexual identifying gamers connect with their gaming avatar, cautioning definitive and stereotypical assumptions.

KEYWORDS:

• User-avatar bond
• disordered gaming
• internet gaming disorder
• sexual orientation
• latent profile analysis

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Research transparency statement

The authors are willing to share their data, analytics methods, and study materials with other researchers. The material will be available upon request. Analytic methods and results can be found in the Electronic Supplement Materials (EMS) 1.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/19419899.2024.2343937.

Notes

1. Participants were not asked to specify their current location, yet due to diversity in recruitment methods (see Procedure), the sample comprised those living in Australia and internationally.

2. When asked about their favourite game played in the past 12 months, participant responses (n = 63) included single/multiplayer, online/offline, role-playing genres. Most commonly (>50%), participants reported MMORPG, single player action-roleplaying, and MMO battle videogames.

Additional information

Funding

While working on the manuscript, Vasileios Stavropoulos was supported by a grant from the Australian Research Council, Discovery Early Career Researcher Award, 2021, number [DE210101107].