Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to facilitate understanding of how to convert free players to paid consumers in free-to-play games.Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on the consumption value framework and affordance theory, the present study argues that in-game purchase behaviors are determined by multiple consumption values of in-game items. The perceptions of consumption values were influenced by game affordances. The model was tested, using data from an empirical survey with 2,006 free-to-play game players.Findings: Monetary, enjoyment and social values of in-game items positively predict purchase behaviors in free-to-play games. Game fairness and balance of challenges and skills significantly influence perceived enjoyment value.Research limitations/implications: The findings of this study provide operable implications to facilitate in-game consumption. The model was tested within the context of free-to-play multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games; however, caution is advisable when generalizing the findings to other subgenre of games.Originality/value: This study extended and thus validated the consumption value framework in the context of free-to-play MOBA games. This study explored the antecedents of consumption values from the perspective of game affordance.

This paper provides an investigation into how different types of government supports can be used to enhance organizational resilience capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on resource orchestration theory, this study examines the effects of direct government support and indirect government support on organizational resilience capacity, the mediation role of digital capability, and the moderation effects of organizational unlearning. The empirical results from 205 Chinese firms show that direct government support and indirect government support have positive effects on organizational resilience capacity, which were mediated by digital capability. In addition, organizational unlearning positively and negatively moderates the positive relationship between direct government support, indirect government support and digital capability. Our theoretical discussion and empirical results contribute to the literature related to organizational resilience, digital capability, government support, and organizational unlearning.

Drawing on social cognitive theory and social network theory, this study investigates the relationships between managerial ties, entrepreneurs’ cognitive bias, and the effectuation and causation of behavioural modes of entrepreneurship. It uses structural equation modelling to analyse a sample of 214 entrepreneurs in China. The empirical results indicate that business ties lead entrepreneurs to use effectual approaches by prompting the entrepreneurs’ overconfidence, whereas institutional ties enable entrepreneurs to use both causation and effectuation by prompting the entrepreneurs’ illusion of control. This study delineates how different types of managerial ties affect causation and effectuation through different cognitive mechanisms.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate the proper matches between institutional business ties (to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and to banks) and firm capabilities (technological capability and marketing capability) in impacting the radical innovation of manufacturing firms in China.Design/methodology/approach: Using the samples of 208 manufacturing firms in China, this study runs three regression models to test all hypotheses.Findings: Ties to SOEs and ties to banks are positively related to radical innovation of manufacturing firms in China. Further, the technological capability and marketing capability have different functions on moderating the relationship between institutional business ties and radical innovation.Practical implications: The results imply that managers of manufacturing firms should strive to establish close connections to those organizations that are set-up by government in China. In addition, managers should cautious about the synergies between different institutional business ties and different internal capabilities, and properly matching them to develop radical innovation.Originality/value: This study enriches and extends the managerial ties literature by going beyond previous narrow focus on either business ties or political ties to address a particular type of organization that is set-up by the governments but operate in the business world. The findings of proper ties-capabilities matches provide nuanced understandings to dynamically manage external resources and internal capabilities for the synergetic benefits (e.g. radical innovation). This study also offer a theoretical paradigm (i.e. resource management model) for manufacturing firms to lessen the striking tension between the urgent needs for radical innovation and the hostile ground for conducting radical innovation.