Table_1_Do Chinese viewers watch e-sports games for a different reason? Motivations, attitude, and team identification in predicting e-sports online spectatorship.docx

IntroductionUnderstanding factors that predict the intention of e-sports game online spectatorship has drawn a great deal of scholarly attention. Prior work on this topic has primarily focused on explaining the mediation mechanism between the spectator motivations and behavioral intention, such as attitude and subjective well-being, while overlooking the specific role of team identification and satisfaction with past experience, which were understudied in the previous studies but also prominent in the context of e-sports spectatorship. Besides, previous research was mainly conducted in a Western context; therefore, little was known about the online e-sports audience in China and their motivations to view e-sports games on live-streaming platforms.MethodsThe current study thus aims to examine if and how these factors are related to the intention of watching e-sports games online by hierarchical regression and structural equation modeling.ResultsResults from a survey of 452 Chinese e-sports online audiences suggested that three motivations (skill improvement, entertainment, and friends bonding), attitude towards e-sports game online spectatorship, and satisfaction with past experience were positively related to watching intention. These motivations and satisfaction also positively influenced attitude, while socialization opportunity (one of the motivations) negatively influenced attitude. Furthermore, team identification negatively moderated the relationship between satisfaction with past experience and behavioral intention. Also, attitude mediated the association between motivations, satisfaction, and behavioral intention.DiscussionIn general, our study identifies the motivations that relate to Chinese e-sports viewers’ attitude as well as their watching intention, and underscores the role of satisfaction with past experience, attitude, and team identification in the context of e-sports. These findings contribute to deriving a holistic view of e-sports game online spectatorship.

引言：探讨预测电子竞技在线观赛意图的影响因素，已成为学术界的关注焦点。先前对此领域的研究主要集中于阐释观众动机与行为意图（如态度和主观幸福感）之间的中介机制，却忽视了团队认同及对过往体验的满意度在先前研究中虽被较少探讨，但在电子竞技观赛情境中却显得尤为突出。此外，先前研究主要在西方语境下进行，因此，关于中国在线电子竞技观众及其在直播平台上观看电子竞技比赛的动机知之甚少。方法：本研究旨在通过层级回归和结构方程模型，检验这些因素与在线观看电子竞技比赛意图之间的关系。结果：对452名中国电子竞技在线观众的调查结果显示，三项动机（技能提升、娱乐和友谊联结）、对电子竞技在线观赛的态度以及对过往体验的满意度与观看意图呈正相关。这些动机及满意度亦对态度产生积极影响，而社会化机会（作为一种动机）则对态度产生负面影响。此外，团队认同对过往体验满意度与行为意图之间的关系具有负向调节作用。同时，态度在动机、满意度和行为意图之间起到中介作用。讨论：总体而言，本研究确定了与我国电子竞技观众态度及观看意图相关的动机，并强调了在电子竞技情境下，对过往体验的满意度、态度和团队认同的作用。这些发现有助于形成对电子竞技游戏在线观赛的全面认识。