THE ART OF CRUNCH - A quantitative study on the effects of a high-pressured period during video game production on organizational commitment

Essay/Thesis: 30 hp Program and/or course: Master’s Programme in Strategic Human Resource Management Level: Second Cycle Semester/year: 4th/Spring/2018 Supervisor: Kristina Håkansson Examiner: Tomas Berglund Report No: Keyword: Crunch, overtime, affective commitment, video game, thesis The video gaming industry is one of the most lucrative markets in the world, yet surprisingly, little research is devoted to the industry. Most of the research that can be found about the video gaming industry is primarily focused on the gender issues that is prominent in the industry. However, crunch, a stressful period in the production process that comes with long overtimes, which are often uncompensated, is an issue that has been a part of the industry for decades. Overtime has also rarely been studied in relation to organizational commitment in labour science, therefore this thesis aims to bridge the gaps concerning lack of research on crunch and overtime’s effect on organizational commitment by conducting a study on how overtime in the form of crunch affects organizational commitment among video game developers. The hypothesis claims he more the video game developer experiences “crunch time” in his/her organization, the more likely is he/she to exhibit lower levels of affective commitment. The hypothesis was tested quantitatively by creating and distributing a survey to video game developers and analyzing the data by employing an OLS multivariate regression analysis. According to the results, the primary hypothesis had to be accepted, as the frequency of experiencing crunch is significantly correlated with lower values of affective commitment. This result is important, as it shows that crunch can have a negative impact on video game developer’s affective commitment, even when controlling for several other factors. Foreword I would first like to thank my thesis supervisor Kristina Håkansson, of the department of Sociology and Work Science at Gothenburg University. Her knowledge and experience in researching organizational commitment has been a tremendous help to my thesis from day one and she was always there to help me whenever I ran into a problem or had a question regarding my research. My thesis would not be what it is without her guidance and support I would also like to thank all of the respondents that have answered the questionnaire. This thesis could not have been completed without your help and support. I would also like to thank the IGDA for their support for allowing me to post my survey on their local FB group pages. Furthermore, I would like to thank my fellow classmates and friends from the Strategic Human Resource Management program, who gave me valuable recommendations and critiques throughout the thesis-writing process. Working with all of you during the past two years has been a pleasure and an honor. I would also like to thank Adelen, for all her love and support during the thesis-writing process. Special thanks also go to Alma and Vladimir for their support during the thesis and pushing me to always do my best. Finally, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my family, both here in Gothenburg and in Slovenia. They have encouraged me every step of the way with their unfailing emotional support throughout my studies. I would especially like to thank my sister and her family for welcoming me to her home during my first months in Sweden and helping me reintegrate myself into my place of birth. Last but not least, I would like to thank my mother, who was always there for me when I needed her. This thesis would not have been possible to write without your help. Thank you.