Problematic Use of Massively Multiplayer Online Games: Scale Development and Validation

With the rise of the Internet, the new phenomenon of problematic use of online games has emerged, particularly with the popular genre of massively multiplayer online games (MMOGs). Currently, there are a growing number of reported cases of problematic MMOGs use and related negative outcomes. Though the concept of problematic MMOGs use has received considerable attention in the psychology community, there is still a lack of general consensus regarding its dimensionality, operationalization, and development, as well as a paucity of theory-guided empirical research. Thus, this study attempts to bridge research gaps by operationalizing and empirically validating a scale to measure problematic MMOGs use. In this research-in-progress paper, we propose a rigorous approach in developing and validating a problematic MMOGs use scale. The authors believe that this research will contribute to an understanding of the phenomenon and development of problematic MMOGs use in IS research, and add to the repository of rigorous research instruments for researchers to use.