Sexist games = sexist gamers? A longitudinal study on the relationship between video game use and sexist attitudes

Breuer Johannes, Kowert Rachel, Festl Ruth, Quandt Thorsten

Research article (journal)

Abstract

From the oversexualized characters in fighting games, such asDead or AliveorNinja Gaiden, to the overuse of the damsel in distress trope in popular titles, such as theSuper Marioseries, the under-and misrepresentation of females in video games has been well documented in several content analyses. Cultivation theory suggests that long-term exposure to media content can affect perceptions ofsocial realities in a way that they become more similar to the representations in the media and, in turn, impact one's beliefs and attitudes. Previous studies on video games and cultivation have oftenbeen cross-sectional or experimental, and the limited longitudinal work in this area has only considered time intervals of up to 1 month. Additionally, previous work in this area has focused on the effectsof violent content and relied on self-selected or convenience samples composed mostly of adolescents or college students. Enlisting a 3 year longitudinal design, the present study assessed therelationship between video game use and sexist attitudes, using data from a representative sample of German players aged 14 and older (N=824). Controlling for age and education, it was found thatsexist attitudes—measured with a brief scale assessing beliefs about gender roles in society—were not related to the amount of daily video game use or preference for specific genres for both female andmale players. Implications for research on sexism in video games and cultivation effects of video games in general are discussed.

Details zur Publikation

Pages: 6
Release year: 2015
Language in which the publication is written: English