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Why can't they stop playing? Relative deprivation and problematic Otome game behavior among adult women

Gao Y 1 , Wei Z 2 , Shi R 3 , Razak PNA 4 , Nor FMM 5

Affiliations 

  • 1 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, City University of Macau, T233, Tai Fung Building, Avenida Padre Tomás Pereira, Taipa, Macau; School of Art and New Media, Guangzhou City Polytechnic, No.142, Kejiao Avenue, Zengcheng District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China. Electronic address: H23092105115@cityu.edu.mo
  • 2 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, City University of Macau, T233, Tai Fung Building, Avenida Padre Tomás Pereira, Taipa, Macau. Electronic address: H23092105228@cityu.edu.mo
  • 3 Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, City University of Macau, T233, Tai Fung Building, Avenida Padre Tomás Pereira, Taipa, Macau. Electronic address: rtshi@city.edu.mo
  • 4 Faculty of Creative Industries, City University Malaysia, Menara City U, No. 8, Jalan 51A/223, 46100, Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia. Electronic address: puteri.nuraqidah@city.edu.my
  • 5 Faculty of Creative Industries, City University Malaysia, Menara City U, No. 8, Jalan 51A/223, 46100, Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia. Electronic address: fakir.mohamad@city.edu.my
Acta Psychol (Amst), 2026 Oct;270:107968.
PMID: 42849133 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2026.107968

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To examine the associations between relative deprivation and problematic Otome game behavior among adult female players, test the parallel mediating roles of player-character attachment and maladaptive cognition, and examine the separate moderating role of trait mindfulness.

METHOD: An online cross-sectional survey was conducted among 433 Chinese adult female Otome gamers recruited through snowball sampling on Xiaohongshu and Weibo.

RESULTS: Relative deprivation was positively associated with problematic Otome game behavior, and both player-character attachment and maladaptive cognition showed significant indirect associations. Trait mindfulness was positively correlated with maladaptive cognition (r = 0.417) and problematic Otome game behavior (r = 0.510), whereas negative RD × TM interactions indicated that the positive RD-related associations with player-character attachment, maladaptive cognition, and problematic Otome game behavior became weaker as trait mindfulness increased.

CONCLUSION: The findings suggest that problematic Otome game behavior may be associated with both player-character involvement and maladaptive gaming cognition. The mindfulness interactions indicate attenuation of RD-related slopes rather than a generally protective association of higher mindfulness. Given the cross-sectional and non-probability sampling design, causal interpretations should be avoided.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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