Transgressive play or playful transgressions? Dynamic interpretations of toxic behaviour in multiplayer online games

Toxic behaviour in the gaming sphere is variably and inconsistently defined even though it is frequently used in gaming-related literature. It also tends to be used interchangeably with tangential terms (e.g., trolling, griefing) that aren’t conceptually equivalent. Thus, although toxic behaviour has been flagged as a prevalent and problematic issue in online gaming, there remain challenges for effectively assessing its impact on gaming experience and player well-being due to definitional uncertainties. The present study is an attempt to reconcile these uncertainties through an exploration of how players define and recognize toxic behaviour in multiplayer online games. Through semi-structured interviews with 30 online gamers, we propose that toxic behaviour in MOGs can be defined by highlighting the socially undesirable nature of an action, its detrimental effects on victims, and the perpetrator’s intentionality in executing an action. Interestingly, there is a paradoxical disconnect between how players conceptually define toxic behaviour, and how they practically recognize it in actual gameplay. The latter can often be impulsive, or otherwise involve a dynamic evaluation influenced by their attitudinal and emotional dispositions, the people that they are playing with, and the gameplay setting. These interpretations sometimes deviate from the understood definition in a decontextualized setting. Findings from this study have strengthened our understanding of how players dynamically navigate social encounters in games, and how they distinguish between toxic and benign gameplay interactions. An emergent typology of toxic behaviour is also proposed along with some recommendations for future research directions.