“It’s Not My Fault”: Exploring Attributional Patterns in eSports Player Toxicity

Toxicity is a widespread challenge in various esports titles that continues to grow despite implementing various countermeasures. Attribution theory, consisting of the dimensions of locus of causality, stability, and internal and external control, offers a promising way to understand toxicity better, as how players interpret events in the game influences their perceptions and, ultimately, their toxic behavior. Given that attribution to external factors can reinforce and normalize toxic behavior in esports, this study investigates the timely topic of associations between toxic behavior and player attributions. To do so, we conducted an online survey with 217 League of Legends players. Our stepwise regression analysis indicates that players’ perceptions of external causality play a role in normalizing toxic behavior, whereas the perception that such behaviors are temporary enhances their execution. Additionally, the age of participants showed a substantial negative relationship with toxic normalization and toxic perpetration, indicating that older participants were significantly less likely to accept or engage in toxic behavior. In summary, players do not perceive toxic behavior as their responsibility, which explains the challenge of deriving effective intervention strategies against toxicity.