Spending real money: Purchasing patterns of virtual goods in an online social game

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

47 Scopus citations

Abstract

Researchers have found that "social" factors contribute to purchasing intentions of virtual goods in an online social game, but little is known about actual purchasing behavior. Study 1 examined the relationship between social factors and virtual goods purchasing patterns using large scale data obtained by server logs of an online social game. Exchange of virtual goods and number of friends increased the likelihood of spending real money compared to no spending. Among those who did spend real money, giving virtual goods to others was the strongest factor associated with the amount of spending. Study 2 examined purchasing patterns of players who spent real money: High real-money spenders were buying items for visual customization while low spenders were buying consumable items necessary to sustain playing the game.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationCHI 2014
Subtitle of host publicationOne of a CHInd - Conference Proceedings, 32nd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems
PublisherAssociation for Computing Machinery
Pages3359-3368
Number of pages10
ISBN (Print)9781450324731
DOIs
StatePublished - 2014
Externally publishedYes
Event32nd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI 2014 - Toronto, ON, Canada
Duration: Apr 26 2014May 1 2014

Publication series

NameConference on Human Factors in Computing Systems - Proceedings

Other

Other32nd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI 2014
Country/TerritoryCanada
CityToronto, ON
Period4/26/145/1/14

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Software
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Computer Graphics and Computer-Aided Design

Keywords

  • Big data
  • Consumer behavior
  • Customization
  • E-commerce
  • Social exchange
  • Social game
  • Virtual goods

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