Gender Divide and the Computer Game Industry

322 Pages·2013·4.685 MB·English

by  Julie Prescott, Julie Prescott, Jan Bogg

Gender Divide and the
Computer Game Industry
Julie Prescott
University of Bolton, UK
Jan Bogg
University of Liverpool, UK
A volume in the Advances in Human and
Social Aspects of Technology (AHSAT)
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Prescott, Julie, 1975-
Gender divide and the computer game industry / by Julie Prescott and Jan Boggs.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Summary: “This book takes a look at the games industry from a gendered perspective and highlights the variety of ways in
which women remain underrepresented in this industry”-- Provided by publisher.
ISBN 978-1-4666-4534-9 (hardcover) -- ISBN 978-1-4666-4535-6 (ebook) -- ISBN 978-1-4666-4536-3 (print & perpetual
access) 1. Video games industry--Social aspects. 2. Video games--Social aspects. 3. Women computer industry employ-
ees. 4. Sex discrimination in employment. I. Boggs, Jan, 1959- II. Title.
HD9993.E452P74 2014
331.4’87948--dc23
2013020690

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(ISSN: 2328-1316; eISSN: 2328-1324)
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Table of Contents
Foreword ................................................................................................................................ix
Preface ....................................................................................................................................xi
Acknowledgment ...............................................................................................................xviii
Section 1
Chapter 1
Introduction: Why the Gender Divide in Computer Games is an Important and
Timely Issue ...............................................................................................................................1
Introduction ........................................................................................................................1
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................18
Chapter 2
The Computer Game Industry, Market, and Culture ..............................................................28
Introduction ......................................................................................................................28
The Computer Games Industries Current Climate: The Culture of Games and their
Economic Impact ....................................................................................................30
Economic Impact of Playing Games ................................................................................33
The Upgrade Culture: The Technical Impact of Computer Games ..................................35
Games and their Cultural Impact ......................................................................................36
Family Friendly Games and Games for All ......................................................................38
Parental Mediation of Computer Games ..........................................................................40
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................42
Chapter 3
Games and Society: Can Games Make a Better World? ..........................................................51
Introduction ......................................................................................................................51
Learning, Technology and the Net Generation .................................................................53
Gender Differences in Technology Use ............................................................................54
Serious Games: Games for Learning ................................................................................56
Computer Games in the Clinical Education Environment, Game Play to Change
Health Behaviour, Health Promotion and Attitudes ...............................................59
Drawbacks to Games for Learning and the Gendering of Computer Games ...................62
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................63
Chapter 4
Play Preferences and the Gendering of Gaming .....................................................................73
Introduction ......................................................................................................................73
Motivation for Game Play ................................................................................................75
Gender Differences in Computer Use and Game Play .....................................................78
Gender, Game Genre and Preferences ..............................................................................79
Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (MMORPG’s) ...............................82
Games for Girls’ vs. Games for All: Pink Games ............................................................84
Gendered Space ................................................................................................................86
Conclusion ........................................................................................................................87
Section 2
Chapter 5
Representation, Image, and Identity .......................................................................................98
Introduction ......................................................................................................................98
Female Under-Representation in Computer Games: Why the Lack of Women
within Games? ......................................................................................................100
Beyond Games: Game Culture .......................................................................................103
The Effects of the Sexist Representation of Females In Games ....................................105
Gender, Stereotypes and Identity in Games: The Hyper Sexualised
Female Character ............................................................................................................107
Identity and the Avatar ....................................................................................................108
Conclusion ......................................................................................................................111
Chapter 6
Game Workers and the Gender Divide in the Production of Computer Games ...................123
Introduction ....................................................................................................................123
Gendered Occupation Segregation: Implications for Women, Society and the
Computer Games Industry ....................................................................................125
Women Working in the Computer Games Industry .......................................................128
Gendered Segregation in the Computer Games Industry ...............................................130
The Gendered Pay Gap ...................................................................................................131
Reasons for Female Underrepresentation within the Industry .......................................132
Work Life Balance ..........................................................................................................133
Female Impact: Benefits to the Industry and Society .....................................................136
Working Practices ...........................................................................................................137
Conclusion ......................................................................................................................139
Chapter 7
The Experience of Women Game Developers ......................................................................147
Introduction ....................................................................................................................147
Career Motivation of Women in the Computer Games Industry ....................................148
Person-Environment Fit of Women in the Computer Games Industry ..........................149
Job Satisfaction of Women in the Computer Games Industry ........................................151
Self Issues for Women in the Computer Games Industry ..............................................152
Career Factors of Women in the Computer Games Industry ..........................................155
Life Issues for Women in the Computer Games Industry ..............................................156
Conclusion ......................................................................................................................157
Chapter 8
Issues Career Women Face ...................................................................................................170
Introduction ....................................................................................................................170
Career Barriers and Drivers ............................................................................................171
Gender Bias and Stereotypes ..........................................................................................172
Senior Women, Profile and Visibility .............................................................................174
The Leaky Pipeline to Seniority .....................................................................................177
Aspiring to Seniority ......................................................................................................178
Mentoring .......................................................................................................................180
Networking .....................................................................................................................182
Work/Life Balance ..........................................................................................................184
Conclusion ......................................................................................................................186
Chapter 9
Reflections for the Future ......................................................................................................193
Introduction ....................................................................................................................193
Career Factors and Gendered Stereotypes ......................................................................196
Gender and Time ............................................................................................................201
Gender and Support ........................................................................................................203
Conclusion ......................................................................................................................206
Chapter 10
Final Thoughts and Concluding Comments .........................................................................216
Introduction ....................................................................................................................216
The New Industry of Computer Games: New Industry Same Old Issues ......................218
Generational Differences ................................................................................................219
Our Study Findings ........................................................................................................220
Guiding Message: The Gendered Divide in Computer Games and Gaming Culture ....222
The Way Forward: Future Research Questions ..............................................................229
Related References ...............................................................................................................240
Compilation of References ..................................................................................................266
About the Authors ................................................................................................................299
Index ......................................................................................................................................300
ix
Foreword
This book addresses the relationship between gender and computer gaming in three contexts.
It considers the representation of gender within games themselves, the gender dynamics of
gaming culture, and their production within the industry. The comprehensive examination of
these issues provided in the included chapters is timely given that computer gaming continues
to be perceived as both a male leisure activity and a male dominated industry. It also has wider
relevance for understanding barriers to female employment in science and technology more
generally, gender segregation in the labour market, and the gendering of leisure within society.
Although it addresses these issues primarily from the perspective of social and organisational
psychology, it also draws on relevant literature in related areas. This makes the book of relevance
to a wide variety of academics, researchers and students, as well as those within the gaming and
related industries.
The book sets out to examine both the myths and realities of the gendering of gaming in the
specified contexts in order to identify the ways in this can be recognised, challenged and changed
in both production and consumption. It effectively demonstrates the economic importance of
gaming as an industry and leisure activity in contemporary society. This provides an important
context for demonstrating the importance of the examination of women as producers and consum-
ers of games. It also addresses the issue of gendered representation within games and associated
interactions in online gaming spaces, and considers possibilities for resistance to traditional
gender roles. The recognition that masculinity and femininity are not homogenous categories
is important, and the book effectively argues for the need to give greater consideration to this
issue when examining game preferences, the gender dynamics of the activity and the industry.
One of the most useful contributions is the presentation of the results of empirical research
examining female experiences of working within the gaming industry itself. It also addresses
emerging areas of gender and gaming, which have not currently received sustained empirical
attention. These include family friendly games and parental mediation, as well as the implica-
tions of gendering for the educational use of games.