Promoting Male Online Gamers’ Positive User Experience: A Hierarchical Approach

Exploring the intricate online gaming landscape, we employ the means-end chain (MEC) theory to investigate male players’ positive user experience (UX) to understand how specific game attributes fulfill male players' psychological needs and lead to positive experiences. We conducted in-depth interviews with 15 male participants with experience in multiplayer online games. We designed these interviews to explore the participants’ gaming experiences. In particular, the interviews focused on the game attributes they valued, the psychological needs they sought to fulfill, and the positive experiences they derived from gaming. We analyzed the interview data using a laddering technique, a qualitative research method that identifies the linkages between product attributes, benefits, and values. Our findings reveal that male players in our study primarily sought to fulfill six psychological needs through online gaming: autonomy, competence, personal growth, player engagement, pride, and relatedness. We found a link between specific game attributes and their realization, which leads to positive user experiences characterized by enjoyment, satisfaction, and fulfillment. This study contributes to the literature by explaining male players’ positive user experience in a nuanced manner. It offers valuable insights for game designers and companies to create more customized engaging and satisfying gaming experiences.