Journal of Physical Education and Sports Management

“Uh oh, we have an Egirl”: When, Where, and How Gender Influences Gaming
Trevor Bopp, Ph.D, Kostas Karadakis, Ph.D, Megan Shay, Ph.D

Abstract
Despite the increasing presence of female participants and fans, online gaming remains a space in which women are minoritized and marginalized. To better understand how gender influences the experiences of women gamers, we examined the chatlogs and field notes of 18 gamers over a four-week period. Our analysis confirmed toxic and sexist rhetoric toward women gamers maintaining gaming as hypermasculine space. Moreover, we examined when such toxicity takes place, and found it to be most prevalent when playing massively multiplayer online role-playing games during the latter half of the week into the weekend, as well as in the evening and nighttime hours. The results add further insight into women's gaming experiences with discrimination and hostility. Practical implications stemming from the resultant types of aggression, games played, competition levels, and time(s) during which negative behaviors were experienced, are discussed and future research suggestions made toward the advancement of a more inclusive gaming environment.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/jpesm.v9n1a2