Abstract
Esports is a rapidly growing industry worldwide, and it is making significant inroads in Hong Kong as well. However, owing to debates regarding the distinction between Esports and video gaming and the potential negative effects of engaging in Esports, its development in Hong Kong is still in its infancy. Therefore, this qualitative study investigated the perceptions and attitudes of teenagers and young adults toward Esports development and engagement, using the theory of planned behavior. Twenty-five teenagers and young adults (male = 24, female =1) participated in this study, with their ages ranging from 15 to 29 years. Our results revealed the views of Hong Kong teenagers and young adults on the beneficial and deleterious outcomes (goal setting and achievement, physical health, socialization and teamwork, psychological benefits, academics and time distribution, physical strain, negative social image, and perception toward sport participation), subjective norms (parents, peers, teachers, and modeling effect), and barriers and facilitators (balance between academics and Esports, capability, career prospects and future reality, psychological benefits, and peer encouragement and support) of participating in Esports. Additionally, the results of this qualitative study may contribute toward a deeper understanding of Hong Kong Esports players to develop a theory of planned behavior construct for capturing the beliefs and perceptions of Hong Kong teenagers toward Esports.
Highlights
Esports is a rapidly growing industry worldwide
One of the male participants (G1M2) stated: “when you are interested in one thing, you have a goal in your life . . . some high school students don’t know what they want to do in the future, but you have already planned your goals . . . and you will never regret it (Interviewer: Can I take it that you reflect more on yourself when you participate in Esports and training?) Sure
Our results revealed Hong Kong teenagers and young adults’ views on the beneficial and deleterious outcomes, subjective norms as well as barriers and facilitators of participating in Esports
Summary
Esports is a rapidly growing industry worldwide. Owing to this rapid global development of Esports, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government has decided to follow in the footsteps of the global community and promote Esports as “a new sector with economic development potential” (Hong Kong Policy Address 2017/18). Psychological and physical issues prevalent among teenagers include gaming addiction, decreased sleeping time, reduced physical activity, attention problems, screen dependency disorder, and other health issues (e.g., Rehbein et al, 2010; Wang et al, 2014) These negative health impacts have tarnished the social image of Esports, leading to difficulties in developing Esports and different perceptions and attitudes toward its development in Hong Kong. The FinTech community of Hong Kong, based on studies of Hong Kong Esports development, underscored the importance of Esports to be equipped with a positive public image for it to become a mainstream sport (Office of the Government Chief Information Officer, 2018) These studies were neither completely data-driven nor did they possess a theoretical basis compelling enough to illustrate the perceptions and attitudes of Hong Kong teenagers toward Esports development and engagement. The usage of theory could have helped to define the analysis strategy including questions about the level of analysis and how analytical decisions are described (Kelly, 2010)
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