Abstract:
Guilt refers to a negative emotion generated when individuals feel that they have violated social norms and should be responsible for them. Some scholars have studied guilt in study, work, consumption and interpersonal communication, but they pay less attention to guilt in online games. This study examined the guilt of online game players (including the reasons for guilt and the effects of feeling guilt) through Interview method. The results are as follow:(1) The reasons for guilt include affecting health, schoolwork, interpersonal relationship and teammates in game and wasting time and money. (2) The effects of feeling guilt include revise, compensation, rationalization and escape. The results of this study expand people's understanding of guilt in different situations, enrich people's understanding of the causes and reactions of guilt in hedonistic behavior, and provide theoretical basis and scientific support for the practical work of online game addiction and online game consumption.