You Can Make It: Expectancy for Growth Increases Online Gamer Loyalty
研究基于心流理论，发现玩家对游戏等级提升的预期（成长预期）通过提升感知技能和挑战，进而引发心流和忠诚度，为游戏厂商培养忠实玩家提供新思路。
Online games have demonstrated dramatic growth both in revenue and user base, proving their value to electronic commerce managers. Online gamers are strongly motivated by their expectancy for growth, or anticipation of an increase in game level. However, the relevant literature has not yet explained how expectancy for growth impacts online gamer loyalty. This study addresses that question by using flow theory as the theoretical underpinning to develop the hypotheses. The sample comprised 2,025 online gamers, and their responses were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Analytical findings indicate that expectancy for growth is positively related to perceived skill and perceived challenge, subsequently inducing flow and online gamer loyalty. Moreover, expectancy for growth directly enhances flow, indicating its critical role. This study is the first examining how expectancy for growth impacts online gamer loyalty. Improving expectancy for growth was identified as a novel means for creating online gamer loyalty, guiding game providers to build a loyal gamer base.