investiGaming is a publication of the Serious Game Design group in the Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies, and Media at Michigan State University, 2007-2009
This gateway is partially supported by grant 0631771 from the National Science Foundation.
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Gaming Social ContextinvestiGaming › Tags › Gaming Social Context
Selected highlights from the GAMING SOCIAL CONTEXT tag (scroll down to see the full list of entries with this tag, including links to the entries).
Where Gamers Play
• 65% of game-playing teens played with other people who were in the room with them. (Lenhart, 2008)
• Female gamers were about twice as likely to be playing with someone else playing in the same room with them than male gamers. Men were more likely to be playing alone. (Yee, 2008; Williams 2009)
• Females may be under-represented in certain game genres not because they don’t like those games, but because male players who dominate many physical and social access points actively discouraged women from entering (Yee, 2008).
• The physical space where people play MMOs affects who can play and for how long. Games played on high-end PCs with internet access bars access for many demographics. (Lin, 2008)
• Public Cyber Cafes facilitated access for young males to play MMOs but are unwelcoming or even dangerous to females. (Lin, 2008; Lin 2005)
• Most Taiwanese women only have access to a high-end computer at home which they have to share with siblings and obey parental restrictions. (Lin, 2008; Lin 2005)
• There was a level of anxiety among the female participants when boys first intruded on, and then disrupted what is intended to be a girls-only site for gameplay. (Taylor, 2007)
• Boys frequented arcades moreso than girls (63% to 36%, respectively) and girls were more likely to go to the arcade in a group when they did go. (Cantrell, 2006)
• Public gaming areas are largely male-dominated spaces. Women enjoyed playing video games in the privacy of their own home, a typically feminine space. (Bryce, 2003)
• Online communities blend public and household gaming into one large, genderless virtual space. (Bryce, 2003)
• What we think of as preferences of girls for certain games may be due to differences of access, competence, and peer culture than gender. (Carr, 2005)
• Boys reported actually playing significantly more than girls do. One possible reason for this discrepancy is that, for some girls, their access to computers and video games is controlled by their brothers. (McNamee, 1998)
• In all-female classroom settings, girls were more likely to show leadership and experiment.( Koch, 1994)
• For women with little previous computer experience, those who worked in the presence of another performed less well, expressed more negative attitudes toward computers, and reported higher anxiety than did women who worked alone. For men, the presence of others had the opposite effect. (Robinson-Stavely, 1990)
Adult Social Gaming Contexts
• About two-thirds of female gamers were playing with a romantic partner, compared to less than one-fifth of male gamers. Female MMO players who were over 35 were least likely to be playing with a romantic partner. (Yee, 2008)
• Although Baby Boomers like to play alone (88%), they are highly community-oriented and social.ncreasingly, they are playing online games. (Pearce, 2008)
• Boomers wanted courteous and friendly social interaction on Web sites and forums. In forums and online games, many complained of being harassed by younger players, being made to feel stupid when asking questions, or being treated in a generally rude fashion. (Pearce, 2008)
• There are exceptions, but girls and women typically play fewer games and have shorter sessions; males are more likely to make time to play, females to fit playing around other interests and activities (Dawson, 2007)
• Most male gamers appeared to regard women who are keen on games as unusual. (Dawson, 2007)
• Almost all fathers and some mothers spent considerable leisure time playing the games, sometimes with their child(ren). (Gailey, 1996)
• Females played less often in groups than the men. More broadly, the social rewards of gaming – talking about how you are doing, playing together, helping or beating each other – are less a part of the attraction of gaming for females than males. (Dawson, 2007)
• Playing an MMO as part of a romantic relationship helped female players justify long hours spent playing. (Yee, 2008)
• Female players must be much more conscientious and vigilant about revealing their real identities and contact information. (Yee, 2008)
• Many social gamers thought it would be strange to play games all by themselves. Likewise, men like social interaction in popular games that arises from competition and cooperative game play. (Lazzaro, 2008)
• Parents and later, college roommates discouraged young women in Taiwan from “wasting” their time gaming and potentially being inconsiderate, noisy or visually distracting in a shared home or dorm. (Lin, 2008; Lin 2005)
• Females were marginalized through their gaming career and have a tendency to leave video gaming earlier than males because of other constraints including time. (Bryce, 2007)
• The results showed that social interactions in both virtual and physical spaces are of central importance for the enjoyment of online gamers.(Lin, 2005)
• Male and female gamers used videogames and the discussions on game-forums to think and talk about the meaning they attribute to male and female gender performances. (Yosmeer, 2006)
• Women participated actively in the (forum) discussions. (Yosmeer, 2006)
Teens’ and Children’s Social Gaming Contexts
• 47% of teens played online games with people they know in their offline lives. (Lenhart, 2008)
• In fact, family plays a major role in people’s gaming lifestyles, and a particularly interesting dynamic arises when grandchildren come into the picture. (Pearce, 2008; Ita, 2008)
• Girls who become keen on gaming following the example of their brothers often become ‘hard core’ gamers, playing games more often associated with boys.(Dawson, 2007)
•Surveys showed girls’ participation in domestic gaming contexts as consisting of either spectatorship or a form of highly-contingent play, where male relatives and friends take over controllers at the first signs of difficulty (Taylor, 2007)
• In a social context where gender identity did not need to be established through difference (boy vs. girl), the way girls discussed, interpreted, and designed games was not used to achieve a gendered identity but rather other aspects of their identity. (Pelletier, 2008)
• Teens who played games socially (a majority of teens did so) were more likely to be civically and politically engaged than teens who played games primarily alone. Teens who played games with others online are not statistically different in their civic and political engagement from teens who play games alone. (Kahne, 2008)
• Boys are about twice as likely as girls to report having civic gaming experiences, even when controlling for frequency of game play. (Kahne, 2008)
• Girls apparently had no problem keeping up with this alleged boy-culture and were not afraid to make themselves heard when boys engaged in sexist language and comments. (Yosmeer, 2006)
• It was more socially acceptable for boys to play video games “a lot” than it was for girls. (Funk, 1996)
• More girls than boys felt it was possible for a girl to be popular and play a lot of electronic games (Funk, 1996).
• 3.5 to 4.5 year old girls were more persistent than boys when trying to complete puzzles and the girls were better able to verbalize their strategies both to the experimenter and to a classmate than the boys were. (Tchernigova, 1995)
• Observations and interviews showed that girls have an interest in electronic games and enjoy playing. Girls were particularly interested when given the opportunity to socially interact with others. (Inkpen, 1994)
Bertozzi, Elena (2008)
Synopsis:
The author describes the teaching strategies she used in order to increase the success and number of female and minority students in a game development program at the collegiate level.
Keywords:
academia, classroom context, adults younger, girls designing games, game design
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes
Synopsis:
This paper explores the social contexts which contribute to constraining female access gaming.
Keywords:
gaming social context, journal, children
Full Text: No | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Looks broadly at computer games as a leisure activity for women.
Keywords:
journal, gaming social context, gaming culture, gender stereotypes
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Exploratory qualitative analysis employs a uses and gratifications approach to understand how and why women play shooter video games.
Keywords:
conference, first person shooter, gaming social context, co play, play style, motivations
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A study of gaming preferences of girls in a club at an all-girls school in the U.K.
Keywords:
journal, what women want, United Kingdom, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
An extensive, large qualitative study of British players between the ages of 7 and 40, including interviews and discussion groups with players, parents, professionals, and journalists examines gender differences related to what gamers like and patterns of use.
Keywords:
case study, report, England, game genres, casual games, Gaming Social Context, Player types, Motivations, what women want
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A study of middle school students that characterized children’s views of gender differences in social approval for electronic game playing.
Keywords:
journal, academia, children, experiment, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A combination of content analysis of Nintendo home system games and interviews of families.
Keywords:
book, chapter, digital divide, ethnicity, family dynamics, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Studies how girls interact within a game environment, in the interactive science museum Science World BC during the summer of 1993. Part of a large-scale research project aimed at increasing the number of children who enjoy learning math concepts through games.
Keywords:
journal, case study, educational games, what women want, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A discussion of different genres of gaming practices and the discourses that create boundaries between different forms of game play in terms of learning and development.
Keywords:
academia, chapter, children high school, gaming social context, gaming culture, gender identity, co play, empowerment, friendship
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A phone survey of 1,102 young persons in the United States aged 12 to 17 conducted by Pew Internet and American Life Project in order to explore the link between video games and civic engagement.
Keywords:
survey, report, high school, player demographics, game genres, digital divide, parents and gaming , gaming social context, co play, family dynamics, civic engagement, learning, Internet use
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Explains why girls are often turned off of computers and suggests techniques that might help girls become more interested in computers.
Keywords:
journal, gaming social context, psychology, what women want, Canada, classroom context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A field study of 30 adults observed for a composite total of 45 hours playing favorite games, including video recordings of what players said and did and verbal and non-verbal emotional cues during play.
Keywords:
book, chapter, what women want, what men want, case study, gaming culture, gaming social context, gender inclusive, player types, motivations, player demographics
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Telephone interviews of 1102 12- to 17-year-olds and their parents in were analyzed in order to determine which teens are playing games, the games and equipment they are using, the social context of their play, and the role of parents and parental monitoring regarding games.
Keywords:
academia, survey, report, high school, civic engagement, gaming culture, game genres, player demographics, gaming social context, parents and gaming
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A social study of female players in Taiwan incorporated field notes from observations at sixteen Internet cafes, ,interviews with 43 individual game players and nine focus groups, and the author’s personal observations from over 500 hours of online gaming.
Keywords:
book, chapter, case study, Taiwan, MMO, gaming social context, gaming culture, family dynamics
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Keywords:
conference, case study, gaming social context, family dynamics, Taiwan
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Cool Places brings together the latest thinking within social, cultural and feminist studies to focus upon the complexities of youth cultures and their spatial representations and interactions.
Keywords:
book, case study, family dynamics, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A small-scale pilot study to investigate adolescent girls’ preferences in currently available computer software and future interactive software.
Keywords:
journal, case study, what women want, gaming social context, computer skills
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Examines gender differences in more than 2,400 EverQuest II players, using survey and in-game data from Sony Online Entertainment.
Keywords:
academia, industry, survey, play data, media-press, player demographics, genre MMO, gaming social context, motivations, sexuality
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A study conducted by the child research organization “Children Now” analyzed the gender and racial representations of human characters in top-selling video games.
Keywords:
academia, journal, case study, seniors, player types, gaming social context, adult older
Full Text: No | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
This chapter aims to broaden the discussion to examine how players use game play and game design to construct their own identities, including their gendered identities.
Keywords:
book, chapter, gender identity, girls designing games, gaming culture, gaming social context, game design
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
PopCap Games survey of 1,202 US and UK internet users who play social games at least once a week
Keywords:
industry, genre_casual, co_play,casual games
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes
Synopsis:
A two part study observing men and women measuring computer performance and anxiety levels with people in the environment.
Keywords:
academia, journal, psychology, computer skills, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
This paper explores micro-interactions at an elementary school girls’ gaming club when five girls’ gaming is interrupted by boys.
Keywords:
conference, gaming culture, gaming social context, elementary school, Canada,
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
This study tentatively explores connections between hetero-normative masculinity and video gaming enacted by patrons of a Canadian university’s campus arcade/LAN.
Keywords:
conference, gaming social context, co play, Warcraft, cooperation
Full Text: No | Abstract: Yes
Synopsis:
Discussion of female players of MMORPGs based on interviews and ethnographic data.
Keywords:
journal, MMO, gaming social context, gaming culture, motivations, what women want, gender inclusive, aggression
Full Text: No | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Ten boys and 10 girls from the same preschool class with a median age of 4 years 1 month from multicultural middle class families were observed while solving puzzles in order to identify gender differences in preschoolers’ problem solving skills.
Keywords:
report, children, preschool, competition, gaming social context, puzzles
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
A survey of 7,129 Everquest II players is combined with in-game observations to examine gender differences in play motivations and lifestyle.
Keywords:
academia, journal, survey, gender theories, gender identity, motivations, gaming social context, genre MMO, sexuality, aggression
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
Multiple Surveys with data from 2,000 to 4,000 MMO players are combined with in-game observation to study various hypotheses about the dynamics of gender, play, and relationships in MMOs.
Keywords:
book, chapter, survey, player demographics, MMO, player types, what women want, what men want, co play, gaming social context
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes
Synopsis:
An analysis of postings that contained some sort of gender-performance from online forums concerning the RPG Final Fantasy X-2.
Keywords:
conference, case study, gaming culture, gaming social context, internet use, feminine, masculine, Final Fantasy X-2, fandom
Full Text: Yes | Abstract: Yes | Highlights: Yes