Examination of university students' purposes and motivations for participation in e-sports during their leisure time

ABSTRACT EXAMINATION OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS' PURPOSES AND MOTIVATIONS FOR PARTICIPATION IN E-SPORTS DURING THEIR LEISURE TIME Sezer Şanlı Department of Recreation Alanya Alaaddin Keykubat University, Graduate School of Education June, 2025 (53 Pages) Purpose of the Study: The purpose of this study is to examine the participation purposes and motivations of the generation known as Generation Z, who are continuously interacting with technology and are mostly university students. Additionally, with the findings obtained from this study, it is aimed to contribute to future studies related to the leisure time purposes and motivations of university students. Material and Method: The sample group of the study consists of a total of 478 voluntary university students (273 males, 205 females; mean age = 21.36 ± 3.11 years). The study used a personal information form containing demographic data, the E-Sports Participation Motivation Scale, and the Digital Leisure Time Activities Participation Purposes Scale. Descriptive statistics, Cronbach's Alpha internal consistency coefficient, ANOVA, independent groups t-test, and Pearson correlation tests were used for data analysis. Findings: According to the analysis results, university students who prefer traditional sports for physical activity and recreation purposes have high motivation for digital games, which are more sedentary recreational activities. It was determined that individuals participating in physical activity also have high motivation for e-sports participation. There was a significant and positive relationship (p < 0.05) between all sub-dimensions of the Digital Leisure Time Activities Participation Purposes Scale (Game, Entertainment, Socialization, Communication) and all sub-dimensions of the E-Sports Participation Motivation Scale (Taxonomic Domain, Competence, Relational Self, Competition and Success, Leisure Time). Conclusion: As a result, university students generally play digital games for purposes of gaming, entertainment, socialization, and communication. In e-sports participation motivation, cognitive and affective skill development, competence, competition, success, and leisure time are the most important factors, respectively. Moreover, digital leisure participation purposes have a positive relationship with e-sports participation motivation. Keywords: Leisure time, digital games, physical activity, e-sports