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By utilizing boundary theory and distraction–conflict theory, this study attempted to examine the influential process of supportive teleworking practices granting work scheduling autonomy on work-to-family conflict (WFC) via the mediating mechanism of work interruption initiated from home.

The study conducted two-wave online questionnaire survey to obtain a final sample of 277 remote knowledge workers in Taiwan during the peak period of COVID-19 pandemic. Hypotheses were tested with partial least squares-structural equation modelling using SmartPLS 3.0 software.

The results revealed that supportive teleworking practices did not directly decrease the level of WFC while home-sourced work interruptions fully mediated the negative relationship between supportive teleworking practices and WFC.

This provides a more nuanced explanation for how and why supportive teleworking practices are beneficial for employees to cope with the challenge of work–home interferences under the new ways of working. The findings simultaneously address evidence-based practices to better deal with mandatory teleworking during potential societal crisis beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether flow experience, perceived enjoyment, and interaction affect people's behavioural intention to play online games and whether gender, age and prior experience have moderating effects on online game acceptance.

This study extends the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) with flow experience, perceived enjoyment, and interaction to propose a theoretical model to explain and predict people's behavioural intention to play online games. This model is examined through an empirical study involving 458 participants using structural equation modelling techniques. In addition, a competing model based on the technology acceptance model (TAM) is proposed to evaluate whether TPB is more suitable than TAM to explain the use of online games. The two action‐theoretical models are compared in terms of their predictive power and their practical utility.

Although both models explain the players' intention to play online games very well, the extended TPB model provides a better fit and explanatory power. Notably, this study finds that flow experience is a more important factor than perceived enjoyment in influencing customer acceptance of online games. Further analysis reveals that gender is a key moderator of online game acceptance.

Online game developers need to search for flow experience building strategies that might assist in engaging players. This study suggests that game developers should consider focusing more on establishing the interactions between players (social interaction) and online games (human‐computer interaction) in their marketing strategies.

This study is significant for two reasons. First, it synthesises the theory of planned behaviour with psychological and interaction factors and, second, it presents a blueprint for an entertainment‐oriented technology acceptance model.

The purpose of this paper is to deepen the understanding of why text messages are superseded by using stickers, thus driving instant messaging software (IMS) users’ visual communication process.

Drawing on Uses & Gratifications (U&G) theory and using a semantic technique, this research begins by identifying design indices of stickers and user’s perceived gratifications that they describe and evaluate at their first impression of using stickers in Study 1. Study 2 introduces media richness theory and the expectancy model into the framework of U&G theory and further explains several causal linkages from the LINE stickers’ design quality indices to proximal users’ perception of gratifications and distal sticker use intention.

Study 1 explores four variables, playfulness, variety, delicacy and uniqueness, as stickers’ design quality indices and discloses two user perceptions of gratifications, i.e., the needs of self-expression and of flaunting to someone, as main intrinsic motives for users sending stickers. The results of Study 2 further support the finding that self-expression and a mentality that seeks conspicuousness are two important psychological variables mediating the effects of three design quality indices – playfulness, variety and uniqueness – on visual image use intention.

The main contribution of this research is to verify the psychological mechanism of visualized communication between IMS users. Moreover, the finding extends the digital marketing literature by highlighting conspicuous consumption that occurs not only in consuming luxury goods, but also in costless or cheaper digital product such as IMS stickers.

Motivating users to revisit a social networking site (SNS) by developing a long-term relationship with them is critical for SNS operators to enhance market control and competitiveness. By conceptualizing loyalty intention as an indicator of the long-term relationship, the present study, based on uses and gratification (U&G) theory, aims to explore the role played by online intimacy development with respect to loyalty intention when individuals have gained gratifications through using the SNS.

The study used a questionnaire measuring six types of Facebook gratifications as well as measuring self-disclosure breadth, self-disclosure depth, intimacy with Facebook, intimacy with Facebook friends and loyalty intention. Data, collected from the University of Economics in Vietnam, were analyzed using the partial least squares (PLS) approach.

The results support several findings: (1) the gratifications including entertainment, network extension, recognition and emotional support provided by Facebook may stimulate the users' intimacy with Facebook and/or Facebook users; (2) intimacy with Facebook and intimacy with Facebook friends facilitate users' loyalty intention; (3) having a sense of emotional support influences users to engage in self-disclosure with breadth and meaningful depth, thus leading them to develop a sense of intimacy with Facebook friends.

The study contributes to U&G research, intimacy theory and the SNS literature by offering an understanding of users' online communication self-disclosure and intimacy development, wherein the self-disclosure and intimacy stem from the users' gratifications via using specific SNS services and, in turn, create their loyalty intention toward that SNS.

Online service brand communities (OBCs) are an essential services marketing channel and relationship marketing tool, in which social capital (SC) is a critical success factor. Underpinned in social identity and social exchange theories, this paper aims to explore the effects of SC on customer brand engagement (CBE), considering the roles of collective psychological ownership (CPO), customer citizenship behaviour (CCB) and perceived community support (PCS).

The research model was tested using survey data from 256 participants; 137 from the Xiaomi Community and 119 from the Huawei Fan Club. Partial least squares-structural equation modelling analysis was used.

SC drives CBE. CPO and CCB are important mediators, whilst PCS is an important moderator.

Brand marketers need to foster SC in OBCs to achieve the maximum level of customer engagement. The authors provide recommendations as to how to build structural, relational and cognitive SC, as well as CPO, CCB and PCS. In short, brand marketers need to foster an interactive, empowering and supportive environment.

The authors further service research around the humanisation of technology. Specifically, OBCs are social spaces for brands and customers, and a key enabler of relationship marketing principles, such as CBE. The authors test the roles of structural, cognitive and relational SC in engagement in OBCs, through CPO and CCB. This holistic picture of engagement in OBCs is an important foundation for future service research.

In this study, the authors argue that the host environment of subsidiaries may affect subsidiary initiative via relationships with two stakeholders: public and private stakeholders. On the one hand, the public relationships and private relationships of subsidiaries may affect their tendency to demonstrate initiative. On the other hand, including technological innovation as a moderating effect supports the tendency towards subsidiary initiative.

This study obtained the data through a survey of 216 subsidiaries in China; chief executive officer or senior managers were selected as the data collection sources. AMOS analysis was used to address sophisticated data analysis issues.

Findings based on samples from China support these arguments. The findings contribute to the literature by highlighting that different types of subsidiary initiative coexist within subsidiaries and by accounting for the external environmental relationships and technological innovation.

What determines subsidiary initiatives in the host market? We find that (1) public relationships directly influence subsidiary initiatives, and (2) this effect is moderated by technological innovation. The theoretical framework shows that this interaction arises from the separate impacts of innovation characteristics, especially a foreign subsidiary's interest in entrepreneurial action affecting both growth and maintenance initiatives. In summary, this article concludes that initiatives are not simply the activities of subsidiaries. The authors hope that the strong explanatory and predictive power of these external factors and technological innovation are further enhanced when these concepts are integrated with the charters of internationalizing MNEs.

Gender swapping – when gamers choose avatars of the opposite gender to their own – is a common feature of online gaming behavior, and recent studies have explored the reasons for it. However, no study has yet examined the role gender swapping plays in determining gamers’ continual engagement with communication via online games, i.e., online gamer loyalty. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine this issue and develop hypotheses based on interdependence theory in the online gaming context.

Responses from a survey of 255 online gamers were used for the analysis.

Analytical results using structural equation modeling indicate that gender-swapping behavior is negatively related to social intelligence, which in turn is negatively related to network convergence (the extent of sharing a common social circle), thus contributing to relational switching costs and online gamer loyalty.

This study is the first to examine how gender swapping affects online gamer loyalty.

No studies in the extant literature have explored the role of media richness, i.e., the ability of media to enhance understanding among communication partners in a timely manner, in determining customer loyalty to mobile instant messaging (MIM). Grounded in media richness theory, the purpose of this paper is to examine how media richness influences customer perceived values, consequently contributing to customer loyalty to MIM.

Collecting data by an online survey, the authors apply partial least square procedures for hypothesis testing.

The authors obtain the following findings: multiple cues are positively related to functional value; immediate feedback is positively related to social value; personal focus is positively related to self-expressive value; language variety is positively related to all the above values that lead to user loyalty; and language variety has the strongest effect on user loyalty to MIM.

A first attempt to examine the impact of media richness on user loyalty to MIM, this study provides insights for MIM service providers to make decisions to build loyal user bases.

Online games are popular electronic commerce platforms in which gamers use avatars to interact with others. Avatar identification (the extent to which gamers regard avatars as an extension of themselves) is known to be related to online gamer loyalty. However, few studies have examined how avatars could be designed to enhance avatar identification and online gamer loyalty, indicating a gap. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to contextualize self-affirmation theory into online gaming contexts, identified key theoretical elements and examined how they are related to avatar identification and online gamer loyalty.

This study surveyed 1,348 massively multi-player online role-playing game players, and their responses were analyzed using structural equation modeling.

The analytical results indicate that irreplaceability within a team and avatar customization are positively related to unique avatar image, while avatar customization is positively related to positive avatar image. Moreover, avatar physical attractiveness and avatar ability to achieve are positively related to positive avatar image. Both unique and positive images of an avatar (as perceived by the user) are positively related to avatar identification, and further to online gamer loyalty.

This study proposes new constructs: irreplaceability within a team, avatar ability to achieve, unique avatar image and positive avatar image. Such new constructs provide insights to aid electronic commerce managers in avatar design, thus instilling gamer identification with avatars, and thus loyalty.

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.