Congratulations to my research team for turning our virtual reality experiment into publication (forthcoming, 2025) in the journal, Behavior & Information Technology!

Authors: Shirley S. Ho, Sherry R. Xiong, Benjamin J. Li, Wenqi Tan, & Mengxue Ou

Abstract:

Drawing upon self-determination theory, this study investigates whether the effects of
competition interact with individuals’ prior knowledge to influence the motivations for and
antecedents to their pro-environmental behavior. Using a virtual reality serious game about
plastic waste, we conducted a 2 (Game environment: Competition vs. Non-competition) × 3
(Prior knowledge about plastic waste: Low vs. Medium vs. High) between-subjects experiment
with 61 participants (Mage = 23.31, SDage = 2.77). Results indicated that competition had
differential impacts depending on individuals’ prior knowledge. Competition had negative
effects on motivation and antecedents to pro-environmental behavior for players with low levels
of prior knowledge and positive effects for players with medium levels of prior knowledge. As
the first study to investigate prior knowledge as a moderator for the effects of competition in a
virtual reality serious game, our research contributes to the literature by clarifying the conditions
under which competition could promote pro-environmental behavior and offers suggestions on
customized use of competition for communication practitioners.