Emotion Regulation and Parasocial Relationships in Female-Oriented Games: A Quantitative Analysis of the Chinese Female Gaming Market

In recent years, female-oriented games have gained widespread popularity in mainland China, resulting in an expanding player demographic. Current research on these games primarily focuses on their social impacts, with some studies investigating social anxiety, parasocial interactions, and purchase intentions. However, there is a lack of research examining the effects of emotion regulation strategies and emotional needs in female-oriented games. This study utilized an online survey to investigate emotion regulation strategies, emotional need fulfillment, parasocial relationships with game characters, and both in-game and out-of-game purchasing behaviour among 212 adult female players. The results indicate a mutually reinforcing effect between parasocial relationship intensity and the level of emotional fulfillment. Romantic parasocial relationship intensity is a positive predictor for out-of-game purchases while negatively impacting in-game purchases. Additionally, the fulfillment of emotional closeness positively predicts out-of-game purchases. Cognitive reappraisal, as an emotion regulation strategy, moderates the relationship between parasocial relationships and out-of-game purchases. Furthermore, the fulfillment of emotional closeness mediates the relationship between romantic parasocial relationships and in-game purchasing behaviour.