With great power comes great accountability: Network positions, victimization, perpetration, and victim-perpetrator overlap in an online multiplayer game

Abstract

Can players’ network-level parameters predict gaming perpetration, victimization, and their overlap? Extending the Structural Hole Theory and the Shadow of the Future Effect, this study examines the potential advantages and accountability conferred by key network metrics (i.e., ego network size, brokerage, and closure) and their behavioral implications. Using longitudinal co-play network and complaint data from 55,760 players in an online multiplayer game over two months, the findings reveal that higher network size is associated with greater perpetration and reduced victimization. Network closure is linked to reduced involvement in both perpetration and victimization, while network brokerage is linked to increased involvement in both. The overlap of perpetration and victimization is predicted by higher network size and lower closure. Theoretically, this study complements existing research on gaming toxicity from a structural perspective. Practically, the findings underscore the importance of considering network elements, particularly network closure, in designing interventions to mitigate gaming toxicity.