When gamification backfires: the impact of perceived justice on online community contributions

Leclercq, Thomas;Poncin, Ingrid;Hammedi, Wafa;Kullak, Avreliane;Hollebeek, Linda D.
(2020) Journal of Marketing Management — Vol. 36, n° 5-6, p. 550-577 (2020)

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Authors
  • Leclercq, ThomasIESEG School of Management, Lille, France
    Author
  • Author
  • Hammedi, Wafa
    Author
  • Kullak, Avreliane
    Author
  • Hollebeek, Linda D.
    Author
Abstract
While online communities may enhance firm performance, they commonly fail to retain members. To address this challenge, scholars and managers call for the use of gamification. However, despite gamification’s growing use in online communities, insight into its effect on member experience and behaviours remain limited. We hypothesise that gamification affects member-perceived distributive and procedural justice. In experimental studies, we assess the impact of in-gamification perceived justice on member contributions. We find that while high in-gamification perceived procedural justice acts as a necessary prerequisite for member contributions, high distributive justice can reduce game-related uncertainty, thereby rendering gamified practices less fun, particularly for low-engaged community members that tend to value rewards. We add to the literature by (a) pinpointing the core role of perceived justice in the persistence of online communities, and (b) unveiling that high distributive justice can lead gamification to backfire in online communities by affecting member experience and contributions.
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Citations

Leclercq, T., Poncin, I., Hammedi, W., Kullak, A., & Hollebeek, L. D. (2020). When gamification backfires: the impact of perceived justice on online community contributions. Journal of Marketing Management, 36(5-6), 550-577. https://doi.org/10.1080/0267257x.2020.1736604 (Original work published 2020)