Massively multiplayer online games (MMOG’s) are a specific form of online computer games that allow for millions of people to simultaneously play online at any time. This form of online gaming has become a huge phenomenon worldwide both as a popular past time and a business endeavour for many individuals. There are more than 16 million people worldwide who subscribe to fantasy role-playing online games. Although such games can provide entertainment for many people, they can also lead to problematic Internet use (PIU). PIU has also been referred to as Internet addiction, and can cause significant problems in an individual’s functioning. The study aimed to enhance a greater understanding of the phenomenon of male adults’ experiences PIU with MMOG’s. More specifically the study aims to identify if PIU with MMOG’s can be considered a form of Internet addiction within South Africa. Furthermore, assisting in the further development of online addiction diagnosis and treatment strategies. The study utilised an interpretive phenomenological approach (IPA) and participants were purposively sampled. The data was collected using semi-structured individual interviews. Furthermore, Braun and Clarks thematic analysis was used during data analysis while incorporating the four major processes in phenomenological research, namely 1) epoche, 2) phenomenological reduction, 3) imaginative variation and, 4) synthesis. Themes that emerged from the analysis of the participants’ experiences included, initial description of use, motives for continued use of MMOG’s, consequences of PIU with MMOG’s, perceptions of PIU with MMOG’s, and treatment considerations. This study provided a thick description of South African and international literature and combines the literature with the themes that emerged from the participants experiences in order to produce discussions based on the findings of this qualitative study. Conclusions, recommendations, and limitations of this study informed future research on cyber citizenship by providing a detailed understanding of the context of South African male adults’ experiences of PIU with MMOG’s.

[Truncated abstract] Online games are an exciting new trend in the consumption of entertainment and provide the opportunity to examine selected antecedents of online game-playing based on studying the cognitive, experiential and habitual factors. This study was divided into two parts. The first part analysed the structural relations among research variables that might explain online game-playing using the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) techniques. These analyses were conducted on a final sample of 218 online gamers. Specific issues examined were: If the variables of Perceived Game Performance, Satisfaction, Hedonic Responses, Flow and Habit Strength influence the Intention to Replay an online game. The importance of factors such as Hedonic Responses and Flow on Satisfaction in online game play. In addition to the SEM, analyses of the participants? reported past playing behaviour were conducted to test whether past game play was simply a matter of random frequency of past behaviour, or followed the specific pattern of the Negative Binomial Distribution (NBD). … The playing-time distribution was not significantly different to the Gamma distribution, in which the largest number of gamers plays for a short time (light gamers) and only a few gamers account for a large proportion of playing time (heavy gamers). Therefore, the reported time play followed a simple and predictable NBD pattern (Chisquare=. 390; p>.05). This study contributes to knowledge in the immediate field of online games and to the wider body of literature on consumer research. The findings demonstrate that gamers tend to act habitually in their playing behaviour. These findings support the argument that past behaviour (habit) is a better explanation of future behaviour than possible cognitive and affective explanations, especially for the apparent routinesed behaviour pattern on online games. The pattern of online game-playing is consistent with the finding of the NBD pattern in television viewing, in which the generalisability of the NBD model has been found in stable environments of repetitive behaviour. This supports the application of the NBD to areas beyond those of patterns in gambling and the purchase of consumer items. The findings have implications both for managerial and public policy decision-making.