Psychological Ownership of Avatars in the Metaverse: Its Key Antecedents and Outcomes
Team: Jinsu Park, Hye-Young Kim
Program: Center for Retail Design and Innovation (CRDI)
This study delves into the emerging field of consumer behavior in the metaverse, focusing on the concept of psychological ownership in relation to avatars. It examines how users' perceived ownership of their avatars influences their virtual product ownership and their intent to purchase real versions of these products. Central to this study is the identification of key factors that foster psychological ownership of avatars.
Additionally, it investigates how the method of acquiring virtual currency impacts the development of psychological ownership, initially for the avatar and subsequently for virtual products associated with it. The research employs a survey of 276 participants, analyzed through PLS-SEM. Results reveal that control, intimate knowledge, and personal investment significantly enhance psychological ownership towards avatars, which subsequently extends to virtual products. Notably, the study finds that the method of obtaining virtual currency, especially through a reward system, moderates the transfer of psychological ownership from avatars to virtual products. This is in contrast to direct purchase of virtual currency.
These insights are crucial for understanding consumer behavior in digital realms and offer valuable implications for metaverse platform developers and marketers, aiming to boost consumer engagement and sales in both virtual and physical domains.
Keywords: metaverse, psychological ownership, avatar, virtual product, purchase intention
