Order-Bound Companionship: The Practice of Emotional Labor in Professional Game Companionship
2026-07-27 • Human-Computer Interaction
Human-Computer Interaction
AI summaryⓘ
The authors studied professional game companions in China, people who get paid to play games with others while managing emotional connections. They found that workers deeply engage with clients during paid sessions but emotionally disconnect afterward, using an "order-bound" approach. The study also revealed a complex network involving clients, peers, and clubs, with workers often switching roles among these groups. The authors suggest that future platform designs should consider these emotional boundaries and role changes to better support workers.
platform gig economydigital laboremotional laborgame companionshipdeep actingworker networksidentity fluiditylabor governanceplatform design
Authors
Xiaohe Mo, Yujie Zhang, Yizhen Li, Jianyi Wang, Qinyi Liao, Ray LC
Abstract
Labor in platform gig economy increasingly involves services involving relationship that demand significant emotional investment. Grounded in China's unique socio-cultural and multi-platform context, this study explores professional game companionship, an under-explored digital labor practice. Through interviews with 22 game companionship practitioners, we used a micro-level perspective to relational gig work to analyze how workers navigate intimate boundaries and stakeholder networks. We found that companions adopt an "order-bound" mechanism: performing immersive deep acting during paid sessions, followed by complete emotional disengagement post-order. We also identified a tripartite companion-centric network featuring scenario-based performances with clients, competitive-symbiotic peer relations, and interdependent governance with companionship clubs. Furthermore, significant identity fluidity exists, with individuals frequently transitioning between companion, client, and club operator roles. We provide implications for future labor governance and platform designs for intimate digital work that explicitly account for institutionalized boundaries and gig workers' shifting psychological needs.