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Online services are increasingly utilizing gamification techniques to encourage consumer loyalty and engagement. However, the majority of the gamified services fail to be financially sustainable. Existing freemium and gamified services literature provides scant knowledge on behavioral predictors of in-app purchases in freemium gamified services. The research examines highly interactive consumers' in-app behaviors using competition-based motivational affordances, daily usage behavior and social competition motivation that convert them into super engagers.

The authors applied a multimethod approach by using Multivariate Logistic Regression (n = 685) to analyze in-app behavioral data and Qualitative Comparative Analysis (n = 94) to examine survey and in-app behavioral data of highly interactive consumers of a freemium gamified service to explain paying behaviors.

Results reveal highly interactive consumers that elicit heavy daily usage of the application or excel at in-app challenges are less likely to convert to super engagers. Among super engagers, some are socially competitive, and their inability to advance in the leaderboard corresponds to in-app purchases, while non-socially competitive consumers make purchases to collect extrinsic rewards. Additionally, highly interactive consumers who possess more knowledge about the gamified service become super engagers to increase their chances to be socially competitive.

This research examines in-app behaviors of highly interactive consumers of a freemium gamified service that lead to in-app purchases following varying levels of daily usage behavior and social competition motivation. The authors contribute to the previous literature by defining and examining a new consumer segment – super engagers – that is financially beneficial for freemium services because of their in-app purchases. The authors provide insight on in-app behaviors that convert highly interactive consumers to super engagers and demonstrate that the reason for highly interactive consumers to make in-app purchases is a function of acquiring specific internal and external rewards based on their level of social competition.

This study aims to examine the impact of the gameful experience on behavioural outcomes. Drawing from stimulus–organism–response theory, it proposes and tests a new model that investigates the relationship between the gameful experience, brand loyalty and intention to use gamified branded applications in the sports context. In addition, it explores the mediating role of customer–brand engagement (CBE) and the moderating role of self-image congruity (SIC).

A sample of 436 active users of sport-related branded gamified applications was used to test the model. Data was collected from online sports forums, brands’ Facebook communities and during sporting events.

Results indicate that the gameful experience positively and directly impacts behavioural intentions but does not directly influence brand loyalty. This relationship becomes partially significant when mediated by CBE. In addition, results show that users with high levels of SIC are more likely to continue using the gamified application, whereas users with low levels are more likely to engage with the brand.

This study expands the gamification literature in the sports sector by revealing the importance of the gameful experience in driving loyalty, behavioural intentions and CBE. It proposes a new model that sheds light on the emotional aspect of the interaction between a user and a gamified system and the importance of exploring the effects of moderators, such as SIC, in these relationships.

The purpose of this paper is to research the role of stakeholder motivation in the context of gamification. The authors suggest, that a player’s motivation, is a key determinant of psychological engagement and subsequently, behavioral engagement. To examine stakeholder engagement through gamification, the authors propose a research model that links gamer types, i.e. a gamer’s motivation, with engagement and potential effects beyond the gamified content.

Online survey with 90 active users of a gamified application, followed by a multiple regression analysis.

The findings of the study suggest that a gamer’s typology, i.e. her underlying motivation, positively influences psychological stakeholder engagement toward gamified content and indirectly behavioral stakeholder engagement toward the communication instrument (i.e. the app) itself. The findings suggest that particularly gamified content that targets a person’s need toward achievement is a key driver of behavioral engagement toward an application. Thus, gamer types seem to be a good predictor for engagement on the part of stakeholders.

This research provides first empirical evidence about the effectiveness of gamification of mobile service apps and the critical role of stakeholder engagement. However, several limitations have to be noted: first, the study was conducted with only a single mobile app which targets only a specific audience and which only conveys specific types of gamified content. Second, given the small sample size and sampling approach the findings should be interpreted with care in respect to its reliability, validity and robustness. Third, as only a fraction of the variance of behavioral engagement was explained by the research, future studies should investigate additional variables that drive app usage (e.g. perceived informational value).

When talking about the role of dialogue in the process of establishing good and lasting relations between an organization and its stakeholders, the non-rational (e.g. emotions) forces of engagement are often disregarded. The human drive to play can be a powerful door opener in that process. The paper suggests that engaging in stakeholder relations through gamification might be as effective as the standard way of dialogue and two-way-symmetrical communication. Especially potential stakeholders who lack the interest and motivation for information seeking, can be attracted to the organization in such a manner.

Many studies that focus on engagement in the digital realm look to Twitter, Facebook, etc. in order to study company-stakeholder relationships. Thereby, the importance of many other digital media, especially games, is neglected. However, within gamified apps, small social networks form, which are driven by other forces (such as play), than in the aforementioned.

The present study contributes to research in the area of stakeholder engagement in the following way: even though engagement is widely believed to play a vital role in the process of building stakeholder relationships, research in the field of PR focuses mainly on the behavioral aspect of engagement. The results suggest to pay more attention to psychological antecedents in order to understand what drives engagement.

This paper aims to develop a validated scale that can help in measuring the gamified e-service quality (GE-SQ) in the e-retailing industry.

The paper uses a mixed-method approach to develop and validate a scale for GE-SQ. First, reviewing the literature and interviewing with 14 experts were conducted to explore the initial items and themes. A sample of 215 participants was collected from online customers in Iran. Explanatory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted to this sample to validate the categorized themes. Next, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to confirm the validity of the established dimensions by a sample of 549 online customers.

The results extracted 26 items and categorized them to 6 dimensions. “Ease of use”, “reliability”, “emotional appeal”, “interactivity”, “security” and “visual appeal” have been identified as the dimensions of the GE-SQ scale in the e-retailing industry. The validity of the developed scale containing 6 dimensions and 26 items was confirmed.

This research identified GE-SQ as a valid and reliable scale with six dimensions for measuring e-service quality in e-retailing. This finding has made significant academic contributions to the service quality and the retailing literature.

This paper aims to investigate the effect of gamified e-service quality (GE-SQ) on customer value co-creation, relationship quality and purchase intention in e-retailing.

A questionnaire was used to collect data from a sample of 549 e-retailing customers who participated in a gamified online service process. A structural equation modeling approach was adopted to analyze the model.

The empirical evidence confirmed that GE-SQ encouraged customer value co-creation behavior and relationship quality. Customer value co-creation and relationship quality led to higher purchase intention. Also, value co-creation and relationship quality partially mediated the relationship between GE-SQ and purchase intention.

The findings increase our knowledge of GE-SQ and its behavioral consequences. Moreover, the study proposes and validates a theoretical framework based on GE-SQ, value co-creation and customer relationship quality. This study provides insight into using gamification as a practical tool in the e-retailing industry.

Gamification is a strategic approach employed by practitioners to foster meaningful engagement and enhance the acceptance of recommendations. Gamification affordances (e.g. achievement, self-expression, interaction, and cooperation) catalyze significant psychological processes in consumers, leading to behavioral changes. Despite its application, a gap remains in understanding how these gamification affordances in e-commerce contexts impact customers' perceived values and drive recommendation acceptances.

Employing affordance theory and perceived value theory as our foundation, we have crafted a comprehensive framework that addresses the multifaceted nature of e-commerce gamification, thereby unifying the fragmented knowledge in this area. We implemented a quantitative research design to empirically test the proposed model.

The research reveals that the four principal affordances of gamification – achievement, self-expression, interaction, and cooperation – significantly enrich consumer values across hedonic, utilitarian, and social dimensions. This enrichment facilitates an increased propensity for accepting recommendations.

This study provides a novel lens through which to view the influence of gamification affordances on recommendation acceptance within gamified e-commerce settings. It delineates the effects of each affordance on consumers' perceived value and highlights the pivotal affordances that shape gamified e-commerce experiences. These insights yield actionable strategies for practitioners aiming to refine e-commerce gamification designs and cultivate more engaging consumer interactions.

Online games are popular applications of Internet technology, with over 2.8 billion users worldwide. Many players engage in team gameplay, indicating that online games are suitable media through which players connect with their friends. However, past studies have not examined the ability of games to assist players in connecting with their friends, indicating a gap. To fill this gap, the authors propose a new concept, the friend-connecting affordance, which is the ability of an online game to enable players to contact friends within the game.

The authors built a model to explain how games' friend-connecting affordances influence game loyalty. The authors gathered responses from 1,347 online players and used structural equation modeling to test the model.

The authors found that friend-connecting affordances and team participation influence game loyalty. Gaming intensity and gaming history can moderate the impact of friend-connecting affordances.

This new affordance can be realized through various game elements, offering unique and actionable insights to game makers. The authors also compared the friend-connecting affordances among a number of popular online games, providing insights specific to each game and increasing the practical value of the findings.