The development and validation of the Videogaming Motives Questionnaire (VMQ)

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 15; no. 10; p. e0240726
• Main Authors: López-Fernández, Francisco J, Mezquita, Laura, Griffiths, Mark D, Ortet, Generós, Ibáñez, Manuel I
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 23-10-2020; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Addiction; Addictive behaviors; Adolescent; Adolescents; Adults; Behavior; Biology and Life Sciences; Clinical psychology; Cognitive ability; Computer & video games; Drug use; Electronic & video games; Evaluation; Factor analysis; Factor Analysis, Statistical; Female; Genre; Humans; Linear Models; Male; Mental health surveys; Motivation; Motivation (Psychology); People and Places; Psychobiology; Psychological aspects; Questionnaires; Reinforcement; Reliability aspects; Reproducibility of Results; Research and Analysis Methods; Risk factors; Role playing; Social factors; Social Sciences; Surveys; Surveys and Questionnaires; Teenagers; Video Games; Young Adult; Young adults; Spain
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0240726

Gaming motives are important factors for explaining individual differences in videogame-related behaviors. The aim of the present study was to develop a new comprehensive but brief instrument-the Videogaming Motives Questionnaire (VMQ)-which embraces some of the most relevant gaming motives. In a first study, a pilot exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with data from 140 undergraduates was performed on items from twelve potential motives. This identified eight main factors: recreation, social interaction, coping, violent reward, fantasy, cognitive development, customization, and competition. In Studies 2 and 3, an EFA and a confirmatory factor analysis were performed on two independent samples of 407 adolescents and 260 young adults, respectively. The VMQ presented a robust eight-factor structure, with all scales showing adequate reliability indices. In reference to criterion validity, all motives presented specific associations with hours spent playing videogames, disordered gaming, and game genre preferences. More specifically, and in both adolescents and young adults, social interaction was the main motive related to time spent gaming, whereas disordered gaming was related to both coping and social interaction motives. Based on these findings, it is concluded that the VMQ is a brief and psychometrically appropriate tool for assessing the most relevant videogaming motives.