10 Jun 2026
Recently, a research paper entitled “Unpacking Live Streaming Addiction: The Perspective of Self-Presentation”, published by Dr Xiaofei Song from the Intelligent Operations and Marketing Department of International Business School Suzhou (IBSS), Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU) has been accepted by the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. From the perspective of self-presentation, this study reveals the antecedents of live streaming addiction, providing theoretical contributions to marketing and live streaming research, as well as practical guidance for the management and regulation of live streaming platform.
With the rapid development of the digital economy, live streaming has become a core engine driving sales growth, content monetisation, and viewer engagement, profoundly reshaping consumption, and social behaviour. According to 2024 data, the number of online live streaming viewers in Chinas has reached 833 million, accounting for 75.2% of all internet users, and live streaming has become deeply integrated into daily life. However, intense competition among platforms for viewers’ attention has led to a growing problem of live streaming addiction, which not only poses long-term risks to the sustainable development of platforms, but also threatens industry regulation and viewers’ mental health.
This research addresses a gap in understanding the psychological mechanisms behind live streaming addiction. Its core finding focuses on self-presentation - the intrinsic need for viewers to project an ideal online image and gain recognition within a live streaming community. The findings show that engagement features, such as gifting, comments, badges, and rankings create a link between viewers’ self-perception needs and potentially addictive behaviors in live streaming settings. The study further explains that two factors jointly influence online self-presentation: one is social influence, i.e., the pressure viewers feel to follow community norms and expectations; the other is personal control, i.e., the confidence with which viewers can manage and shape their online image. When these two forces interact, viewers are more likely to meet their self-presentation needs by extending viewing time (non-monetary engagement) and providing financial support to streamers (monetary engagement), both of which can contribute to addictive behaviour.
Notably, the study finds that viewer engagement is a double-edged sword: on the one hand, high engagement can drive platform revenue by meeting psychological needs for self-presentation; on the other hand, in live streaming scenarios with intensive real-time feedback and fierce social comparison, such engagement can develop into addictive behavior. The study also confirms, for the first time, the role of streamer expertise played in the addiction mechanism. Streamers with strong professional capabilities can encourage healthier interactions and reduce the probability of engagement turning into addiction.
Regarding the practical application of the findings, the research team put forward several recommendations. For platforms and policy makers, while enhancing self-presentation and engagement tools or functions (such as customisable profiles, interactive emojis, and community recognition systems), protective measures should be introduced, such as break reminders, spending limits, and cooling-off periods to balance engagement with risk control. Strengthening streamer training is also essential. By guiding streamers to build inclusive communities and discouraging aggressive monetisation strategies, platforms can protect viewers’ mental health while supporting sustainable development. For marketers and industry managers, the research highlights a key insight: the long-term success of the live streaming industry depends on ethical engagement design. Only by balancing monetisation with viewer protection can high-quality industry development be achieved.
The research aims to better understand the underlying drivers of live streaming addiction and provide evidence-based guidance for the industry.. Moving forward, Dr. Xiaofei Song’s team will continue to explore the psychological mechanisms of viewer behavior in digital environments, assisting the live streaming industry in breaking free from the extensive “traffic-first” model to a more sustainable and responsible industry ecosystem.
Dr Xiaofei Song is an Assistant Professor in the Intelligent Operations and Marketing Department at the International Business School Suzhou (IBSS). Her research interests span the fields of Marketing and Information Systems, with a focus on viewer engagement, live streaming, team diversity, and rivalry. Her work has been published in leading journals such as the Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, and the Journal of Management Analytics.
The Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, published by Elsevier, is a top-tier international academic journal indexed in both SCIE and SSCI (JCR Q1; ABDC-A). As a Tier 1* journal in the management category with the latest impact factor of 11, it is dedicated to publishing cutting-edge research findings in fields such as retail services, consumer management, and consumer behaviour, boasting high academic influence and international recognition in the business and retail sectors.
10 Jun 2026