Abstract
Casual videogames (CVGs), played on smartphones, are becoming increasingly popular, especially among females and adults. Whereas the addictive potential of online (computer) videogames is well-established, there is yet insufficient evidence for Internet gaming disorder (IGD) in mobile gamers and for the mediating role of some mechanisms involved. The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of the frustration of psychological needs on mobile videogamers’ addictive behavior as well as the role of cognitions (game-use expectancies) and behaviors (time spent playing) through a hypothesized serial mediation model, while controlling for important correlates, such as game genre, age, gender and payment during play. A total of 471 mobile game users (211 males) with an average age of 21.73 replied to an online survey containing sociodemographic and game variables, the Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale (NSFS), the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short Form (IGDS9-SF) and a slightly modified version of the Internet Use Expectancies Scale (IUES). The results corroborate the negative effects of need frustration on IGD among mobile gamers and clarify the role of time spent playing and game-use expectancies in the development of IGD, highlighting the important role of cognitions in this relationship. We conclude that both the time spent playing and game-use expectancies should be important targets for clinical interventions, even though they are not included in the diagnostic criteria.
Highlights
The use of smartphones is constantly increasing all over the world
Age was negatively correlated with need frustration, game-use expectancies and Internet gaming disorder (IGD); and payment was correlated with all variables except age
Our results confirm the negative effects of need frustration on IGD in mobile videogaming
Summary
The use of smartphones is constantly increasing all over the world. In Spain, according to the Spanish Institute of Statistics [1], Internet access is present in 91.4% of households and mobile phones are found in 73.7%; in 24.7%, mobile phones are the only communication device. Smartphones are attractive to young people, who start using them earlier and earlier. Of children have access to or possess a smartphone, and by age 15, 93.8% do. Twenty-seven percent of European smartphone users play videogames on their smartphone, which is the same as the percentage of Europeans who play videogames on their
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
