• Korean journal of communication and information
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• v.62
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• pp.51-73
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• 2013

This study is an attempt to find out the meaning of game to middle-aged women who enjoy internet web board game as part of the leisure. In order to discover the perceptions and emotions of middle-aged women regarding game, in-depth interviews with the five women of 48 to 63-year-old were conducted. The results are: First, the web board games to middle-aged women is an opposition of labor, but at the same time a part of day-long procedure of labor. Second, most middle-aged women are not in an autonomous environment where they can pursue active hobbies. Third, middle-aged women do not tolerate sacrificing money or housework on game because the web board games are regarded as a worthless activity. Finally, middle-aged women do not transform the existing social relationships into online relationships, nor form new social relationships through internet. Based on these results, we could draw a rough picture overviewing the gaming experience of middle-aged women, which has been more or less ignored in academic field. game experiences; middle-aged women; web board game; leisure/labor; game culture;

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Information and Communication Engineering
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.72-81
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• 2017

There is a common misbelief that female gamers prefers simple cute easy games so that they are incompetent if higher skill level is required or disqualified to be a winning party member in MMORPG. This pink game theories are the results of video game analysis done in US and Europe way before online games and mobile games become popular thus. there are many evidences that such misconceptions do not hold anymore. However, researches on gender game culture and gender preferences have not been seriously conducted since 2007 in Korea. Thus, in this paper, we surveyed 88 male and 151 female gamers from their late teens to 30s and found a gap between behavior and perception due to serious gender stereotypes. Gender differences are still found in several areas, but the degree of differences were weakened or in different direction from 2007. The game design to attract female gamers should understand such gender gaming culture and gender difference.

• Journal of Information Technology Services
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.149-164
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• 2014

The laws and policies governing Korea's game regulations are becoming more and more topics for debate as we enter the Age of Internet. The nature of the basis for Internet regulations and policies are not rooted in freedom of speech or fundamental values of democracy, but rather focused on solving real-world problems such as protection of the youth. Furthermore, the reality is that regulatory devices for keeping the social order such as regulating gambling are being applied directly to games without consideration on the characteristics of Internet gaming, raising concerns that the expansion of constitutional values and innovative empowerment inherent to the Internet are being weakened. The Geun-Hye Park Administration which succeeded Myung-Bak Lee's Administration, even went so far as to implement the so-called "Shutdown Policy", which prohibits access to Internet games during pre-defined time zones and also instigated a time zone selection rule. In order to curb the gambling nature of Internet games, government-led policies such as the mandatory personal identification and prohibition of player selection or in other words mandatory random player selection are being implemented. These institutions can inhibit freedom of speech, which is the basis of democracy, violate the right of equality through unreasonable discrimination between domestic and foreign service providers, and infringe upon the principles of administrative law, such as laws, due process in policies, and balance in among policies and governmental bodies. Going forward, if Korea's Internet game regulations and polices is to develop in a rational manner, regulatory frameworks will need to be designed to protect the nature of the Internet and its innovative values that enable the realization of constitutional values; for example, the Internet acting as the "catalytic media for freedom of expression as a fundamental human right ", which has already been acknowledged by the Korea's Constitutional Court. At the same time, transparent procedures should be put into place that will allow diverse participation of stakeholders including game service providers, game users, the youth and parents in the legislation and enforcement process of regulatory institutions; policies will also need to be transformed to enable not only regulatory laws but also self-regulation system to be established. And in this process, scientific and empirical analysis on the expected effects before introducing regulations and the results of enforcing regulations after being introduced will need to be strengthened.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.10 no.11
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• pp.89-99
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• 2012

Purpose - Mobile devices, especially mobile terminals capable of telecommunication and wireless connectivity, are leading the advancements in consumer electronics. Digital convergence drives the functions of various devices, such as cellular phones, MP3 players, personal digital assistants, and gaming, into a single device. This trend would continue and applications such as digital audio and video streaming (including personalized content delivery mechanisms) would soon be on a handheld device. As customers want mobile convergence devices, manufacturers are driving new initiatives in the emerging mobile device market. Given the roles played by device design and service content in user satisfaction of a mobile convergence device, this study focuses on identifying and measuring the constructs for the process by which user satisfaction is achieved. This study synthesizes the expectation-disconfirmation paradigm with empirical theories in user satisfaction. Device and service levels are separated, and nine key constructs for user satisfaction of mobile convergence devices are proposed. Insight into this process could help web-based businesses to improve user satisfaction, thus enhancing the effectiveness of e-commerce for sellers and buyers. Research design, data, methodology - This study draws on three users of mobile convergence devices as examples. To test there search model and hypotheses, survey questionnaires were sent to 607 mobile device users. Mobile device users were initially identified from several members, and subjects were randomly drawn. Data from 577 survey responses were finally analyzed. The unit of measurement and analysis in this research study is at a personal level. Results - The measurements for the constructs were developed and tested in a two-phase study. In the first phase, the device and service dimensions were identified, and instruments for measuring them were developed and tested. In the second phase, using the salient dimensions of the device and service as the formulating first-order factors, instruments were developed and empirically tested to measure satisfaction of the device and service. In measuring satisfaction of mobile convergence devices, the critical tasks are to identify the key constructs of such user satisfaction and to develop validated instruments to measure them. Hence, the results of this study have immediate implications for businesses and for research in user satisfaction of mobile convergence devices. Conclusions - This study provides reliable instruments for operationalizing key constructs in the analysis of user satisfaction of mobile convergence devices within the expectation-disconfirmation paradigm. Hence, convergence device makers will be able to examine whether their websites meet their customers' expectations by examining the device aspect of the mobile convergence device customers, and the service aspect expectations and disconfirmation. Moreover, the introduction of expectation and disconfirmation constructs brings the marketing aspect of convergence devices into focus for such retailers, an aspect crucial to the effective design of websites for online businesses. In addition,this study provides the metrics required to initiate future studies on user satisfaction of mobile convergence devices.

• Korean Journal of Culture and Social Issue
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.275-304
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• 2023

This study aimed to examine the mechanisms underlying digital game usage behavior by applying the Theory of Planned Behavior and the Balance Theory. It investigated the influences of attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control on the intention to use digital games, as well as the differences in the application of the Theory of Planned Behavior model based on the balance state among individuals, significant others, and digital games. A total of 315 responses from adult PC game users were collected through an online survey conducted from October 21 to 25, 2021, and were analyzed using multiple regression analysis. The results revealed that attitude and perceived behavioral control had a significant positive impact on the intention to continue using digital games, while subjective norms did not exert a significant influence. By categorizing groups into balanced, unbalanced, and imbalance states based on the balance relationship, the application of the Theory of Planned Behavior model showed that in the unbalanced and imbalance groups, both perceived behavioral control and attitude had a positive impact on the intention to continue using digital games. However, in the balanced group, attitude only had a positive impact on the intention to continue game usage. This study contributes to understanding digital game users by examining both individual psychological factors and the influence of others on digital game usage behavior.