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Women and Video Games 1

Video Games

Joshua Stutzman

Indiana University of Pennsylvania


Gaming is a billion dollar industry. Consumers are willing to buy consoles for $300 -

$600. The controls and new games for these consoles cost around $65 a piece. Gamers will pay

for monthly subscriptions to be a member of an online gaming community. They will buy

computers with processing power that is designed specifically to play games, and why not?

Gaming is fun. It allows the user to enter a world where he has total control over a character or

multiple characters that can fly, pick up a car, or win a war single-handedly. Video games today

not only have eye- popping visual effects but also story lines that rival some Hollywood movies.

So why are most of the bestselling titles for game consoles and computers being bought and

played by a mostly male population? Men and women can like the same movies. They can play

the same sports or non-electronic games. Why is there a gap between the number of men and

women that play video and computer games? That is the purpose of this research paper, to

discover why video and computer games appeal to more men than women.

Speaking from a male perspective, I can speculate as to why guys like these games.

These games give users control over an alternate reality. The player can have super powers,

control over an army, or be a one man army. There are feelings of escape and power when

spending time in a world where the user’s actions have a direct affect on his environment and the

fate of the world in which he exists. These games are fun for the user to play and can be a stress

reliever by allowing escape from the real world. However, maybe the reason guys play so much

is physiological. Allen Reis, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral science, and his colleagues

at Stanford University (2008), have done a study that shows the part of the brain that produces

rewarding feelings and feelings of addiction is more active in men than women during video

game play. Another reason males are more likely to play video games is that the games are

marketed towards males. The majority of games have male heroes. In these games the heroes are


rescuing some helpless woman from a powerful male villain. Also most of these games are

littered with hyper-sexualized versions of women. They mostly have painted-on clothing and

breasts big enough to put any playboy bunny to shame. I don’t know too many guys that will be

turned off by this and I also don’t know a large amount of women that would be happy with this

stereotype.

There are reasons why women may just not be interested in video games. One is that they

would rather spend their time on something else. I’ve heard a woman’s work is never done.

Jillian Winn and Carrie Heeter (2009) have discovered that women “are required to fulfill more

obligatory activities, leaving them less available leisure time, which in turn leaves them less

likely to ‘make’ time for games.” Another factor might be experience. If someone doesn’t have a

fond experience or any at all it would lead to a disinterest in gaming. Elisabeth Hayes (2005)

cites that gaming could appear masculine because most video games are bought for the boys of

the house.

Throughout this paper, I will try and decipher for myself why gaming is more popular

with men than women. Also I will try to find if there are any trends that say this gap will close.

Digital games, such as Bejeweled, are helping to close the gap. This is a game that is easy to

access via phone or laptop. Also it can be played in a short amount of time. Games like these are

getting a foot in the door of the female market. I will also give ideas that might contribute in

making more female friendly console and computer games.

It seems to me that males are drawn to video games because of physiological reasons as

well as marketing. Men will respond to violence and stereotypical female characters in the game.

When playing video games, women enjoy social interactions and some aspects of the video


games, maybe not completing the game. However if they enjoy some aspects of the game, why is

there such a gap between male and female gamers? Even online social interaction games are

dominated by males. What are the reasons behind this?

This research will differ from others in that I will try and discover reasons why women

dislike most of the major titles such as war and sports games. Also I will find out what they do

like about the games they play. Can we incorporate them into a popular format? Is it a lost

cause?

I will gather the information by way of interviews. This is a better method than a survey

because I can receive specific feedback from each interviewee. I will ask about likes and dislikes

of gaming and what would they like to see in major console games. I will interview six males

and six females from the ages 17 to 30. I believe these age groups play the most games and can

give me the best feedback

Before I start my research it is important to understand what others have discovered about

peoples’ reactions to gaming. Research on gaming and gender is easily found. Researchers are

interested in the difference between how both sexes perceive gaming. Studies have been done on

physiological effects of gaming, such as heart rate and brain activity while playing. Others have

focused on breaking down stereotypes such as reasons women don’t play video games. I want to

use their research to help me explain why the gaming industry is a mostly male population. The

number of female gamers is growing, but what is keeping other women from enjoying video

games?


To start, video games were born and raised in a male dominated population. The first

video game, Space War, was created in 1962 at MIT. There were fewer than 500 female students

attending MIT at the end of the 1960’s (MIT Newsletter). So the first players of this new game

were more likely to be male. The first in-home video game was designed by an arcade game

entrepreneur and a military defense contractor (Modern Marvels). The ideas and designs that

spawned the first video games came solely from a male perspective.

The foundation on which the gaming was created might explain why males have positive

feelings towards video games. A large number of video games are war based. The player is either

fighting through an enemy line or protecting his own territory. A study by Dr. Alan Reis of

Stanford University has proven that mesocorticolimbic center, which is the part of the brain

associated with feelings of reward and addiction, is more active in men than women when

playing games based on gaining territory (2008). Even though the women figured out how to

play the game just as easily as their male counterparts, the men were more motivated to gain as

much territory as they could. I think this has a direct connection to why the majority of gamers

are male. Most of the hottest selling video games today are war based. Males feel rewarded by

“winning the war”, and it seems our brains are wired to keep playing these kinds of games. Not

to say that all females avoid playing conflict based games, but men seem programmed by nature

to not only like them more but to feel a need to continue playing.

Another study of physiological effects of gaming was done by Richard Tafalla of the

University of Wisconsin-Stout. He studied the differences between men and women while

playing the game “Doom” muted and then again with sound. He found that men had a positive

reaction to the soundtrack and also performed better than when the sound was muted. Women,


on the other hand, performed no better and showed a rise in systolic blood-pressure (Taffala,

2007). Do some women see these kinds of games as avoidable stressors?

I don’t believe that stress is the determining factor in the difference in numbers of male

and female gamers. I think two of the biggest factors are familiarity with games and time

management. Jillian Winn and Carrie Heeter report that women feel like they have less leisure

time, and the time that they do get is broken into smaller time frames (2009). Video games take

time to learn. The player must learn the rules of the game and how to manipulate that particular

universe with the console controls. Also completion of the game can take hours. The player has

to devote days of free-time to successfully complete the game. Why buy or play a game that is so

time consuming?

Another factor that might limit female game play is experience with different types of

games. I think women do not get the chance to find enjoyable aspects of some games because

they don’t get to sit down and learn how to play the games. Elisabeth Hayes’ study proves that

women who don’t identify themselves as gamers can find enjoyment in gaming if given time to

learn. Hayes studied two women while they played a role-playing game called “The Elder

Scrolls.” She let the women figure out and explore the world of Elder Scrolls on their own. The

women enjoyed the game and learned to navigate through the game environment.

I think there are fundamental differences in how men and women experience gaming.

Based on previous research, it seems the differences are physical and mental. It is an interesting

topic because video games do not seem like they can be used as a tool to study gender

differences. As you can see, video games are more than they seem.


Most of the research I have gathered on the topic has included methods ranging from

observation of subjects gaming habits to interviews about leisure time. To find out how males

and females differ on video games, I thought the most effective method of research would be to

interview each subject about gaming habits, or lack thereof. I wanted to know how much time

each subject spends gaming to assess their familiarity with video, computer, or digital games.

Another part of the interview was asking what aspects of gaming were liked and disliked by each

individual and with whom did they prefer gaming, i.e. alone or with other people. Getting

answers to these questions will reflect what is liked and disliked about gaming from the

perspective of each sex. Because of the lack of a facility in which I could observe both sexes

gaming and the lack of resources that would be used to coerce subjects into entering such a

study, I felt that an interview would yield strong feedback for my research.

My participants were my sister, 16 years old, and a male friend, 24 years old. They were

good interviewees because I wanted at least two people, one male and one female, who I know

have experience with different varieties of gaming. I don’t think the age is important because

anyone who has seen or played video games know what they like and dislike about them

regardless of age. Both interviews were conducted over the phone and took about ten minutes to

complete. The questions asked were:

1). How many hours do you work/attend school?

2). On average, how many hours a week do you game? This is the combined time of video,

computer, and digital games.

3). What is your favorite genre of game? Why?

4). What is your least favorite genre? Why?


5). Do you like to game by yourself or with other people? Why?

6). Are you more likely to try different types of games by yourself or with other people? Why?

7). Do you think you would be uncomfortable trying a game new to you with members of the

opposite sex? Why?

The first two questions are relevant because I wanted to know how serious the subjects

were about gaming. This is based on how much free time they had and how much of it they spent

gaming. Questions about favorite and least favorite genre not only let me know which mode of

gaming they preferred, meaning video, computer, or digital, but also which genres inside of those

modes, meaning sports, role playing, etc., were their most and least favorite. The answers to

these questions will show what the differences, if any, are in the types of games males and

females play. Since one of my assumptions is that females might play be less willing to try

foreign genres because of lack experience, I wanted to know with whom they felt comfortable

gaming. The last three questions are based on this assumption. I feel the questions being asked

are important to understanding the gaming habits of females as compared to males.

After interviewing six people, three male and three female, I have acquired the following

information. The first participant was my 17 year-old sister. She is currently a high school

student so she attends school 30 hours a week on average. She games around nine and a half

hours a week, video games holding the majority of that time. Her favorite types of video games

are extreme sports related and racing. “I like things that I might do in real life.” Her least favorite

are role-playing games, or RPGs. She doesn’t like story lines or completing missions. “I’d rather

see how many points I can get or try and come in first place.” When it came to playing by herself

or other people there wasn’t much of a decision. “Other people because the computer isn’t


challenging enough. I like playing people who have expertise because it is harder and more fun.”

On the other hand she does like trying new games by herself because “it gives me more time to

get good at them before I play someone else.” Lastly she claimed that she would have “no

problem” trying a new game with a group of males.

The second participant is a 16 year-old male. He is a high school student so he also

commits 40 hours a week to school. He has recently had a change in his gaming habits saying,

“Games used to take up the portion of my after school life, but since I enrolled in band I hang out

with my friends and play little to no games.” He now plays video games about two hours a day.

When asked about his favorite genre of video game he was quick to choose strategic war games.

“I like them because I think the strategy part makes it more challenging and fun, plus it gives you

a commander-style perspective instead of a first-person perspective.” He likes sports games the

least because he is not a sports fan. Also he preferred gaming with other people and online. “I

think playing people instead of the computer AI makes the gaming experience more enjoyable

and social.” When trying a new game, it doesn’t matter if he is in a group or not. He also felt the

same about trying a new game with a group of the opposite sex.

Participant #3 is an 18 year-old girl, a friend of my sister’s. She attends school for 30

hours a week and works about 18 hours a week. She games only two hours during the week. Her

favorite style of gaming when she does indulge is RPG because, “it is creative and you also meet

people.” Like the participant #2 she likes sports titles the least. Gaming in a group is more to her

liking than gaming alone. “It’s more fun with other people.” When asked if she would rather try

a new game by herself or with others she choose by herself so she could get better at the game


before playing with other people. Finally she stated that she would feel more comfortable

gaming with males. “I play video games with my brother a lot.”

Participant #4 is a 22 year-old male. He works 45 hours a week and games about 20

hours during the week. His favorite genre of game is sports, specifically Madden NFL Football.

“My favorite sport is football and Madden has all of the players in the NFL. I like building on

their careers.” His least favorite are war based because he doesn’t like the first-person camera

angle. Like the first three participants he enjoys gaming with a group of people. Again the

reasoning is he likes playing Madden against other people. He also prefers trying new games

with others. “We can talk about the game and find out more stuff about it.” When it comes to

trying new games with the opposite sex he feels “completely comfortable.”

Participant #5 is a 17 year-old female. Like the other two female participants she attends

school for about 30 hours a week. She also works 12 hours a week. She games about an hour a

week on her iPod. She likes games that allow the player to advance to different levels because,

“it makes the game more interesting.” Her least favorite are war games because, “you go around

trying to find people to kill. It’s not my thing.” Her feelings about playing alone or with a group

mirrored the previous participants. “There is more excitement knowing who you are playing and

who is watching you.” She preferred trying new games with others because she is interested in

other people’s opinions about the experience. Again like the previous interviewees she is

comfortable trying new games in a group comprised of the opposite sex.

Participant #6 is a 24 year-old male. He works 35-45 hours a week and games anywhere

from 10 to 15 hours a week. His favorite genre is sports games. “I like watching sports. I guess it

transfers to video games.” His least favorite is digital puzzle games. “They are fun a couple times


but I lose interest after one or two. I like real life simulations.” Unlike the other participants he

prefers gaming alone. “I like to relax by myself and play for a couple hours.” He also likes trying

new games alone. “I don’t like to suck in front of people.” Disliking losing to other players also

sways his decision to playing alone. Lastly he is the only participant who wouldn’t feel

comfortable trying a new game with a group consisting of the opposite sex. Stating again that he

would not feel comfortable playing poorly around them.

The first topic I want to touch on is the difference between the males’ and the females’

gaming habits during their leisure time. First off all of the participants put at least 30 hours a

week into their respective duties. The maximum was participant #3’s 48 hours split between

work and school. Only participant #6 has marital and parental responsibilities. All of the

participants however, found time to game. Even though the sum of both groups reported work

and school hours are close, the males’ time spent gaming almost doubles the females’ hours. I

think this can be attributed to the types of games they are playing. The males’ favorite games

included sports titles and strategic war games. These games take up more time to play. Sports

games are simulations of real sports. Therefore they are played within the timing of a game

clock. Even though these clocks are accelerated in the video game versions they still can’t be

completed until the clock reaches zero. Strategic war games are played similarly to a chess

match. The player moves his forces into attack and defensive positions and the digital soldiers

carry out orders. Watching this play out on a monitor takes considerably more time than playing

short bursts on a digital game. Participant #1 reported to like sports titles. However the titles she

enjoys are extreme sports games, like snowboarding, and racing games. These are also played in

a shorter amount of time because the game can be over once a race is over. So why can these

statements be used to explain why gaming is more popular with males than females? Sports titles


change every year because of players moving to different teams. People who play these games

find it important to use the most current versions of the team because it makes the simulations

more realistic. Gamers must buy new versions of the game to stay up to date. War games always

change. Gamers want to experience different scenarios and different landscapes on which to

battle. Digital games and racing games do not necessarily need to be changed. Since all three of

the female participants reported they enjoyed playing with other gamers, I would deduce that the

thrill of competing against and with others is what keeps them playing. Therefore the players of

these games don’t necessarily need updated versions to enjoy themselves. Their game playing

time diminishes because they want the company of others to play the game. This would also

attribute to experience with new games. If enjoyment is found playing familiar games with

others, what is the motivation to try new games? I think there is less motivation. This decreases

the amount of time learning new games and decreases the amount of time gaming in general.

There are a couple questions that could have been asked that might have strengthened my

argument. It might be a good idea to ask if females are put off from some games because of

hyper-sexualized imagery of females in most games. Also I think it could be important to know

the length of the individuals’ gaming sessions because it reflects how consumed each player is

by the game. This might support Alan Reis’ theory about males feeling more addiction and

reward from gaming than females (2008).

In conclusion, I think it is becoming more common for most people to game in one way

or another. A gamer can either be someone who plays one game for hours on end or plays digital

games for short periods of time. I think the gap between male and female gamers are shrinking

because of these new types of games emerging from the internet and mobile devices. My


hypothesis that females might game less because of experience with different titles seems

supported. If someone is content playing the same games with other gamers then it will diminish

the time gaming if no one is around to play with. The lack of diversity makes it difficult to find

new groups of gamers that prefer a different kind of game. The hypothesis about leisure time and

gaming doesn’t have a definitive answer. I think if someone likes to play games they will find

time in which to play them.


References

Hayes, E. (2005). Women, video gaming, and learning: beyond stereotypes. Tech Trend:

Linking Research and Practice to Improve Learning, 49 (5), 23-28. Retrieved February 17,

2010, from Ebsco Host database.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology. (2006). A Century of MIT at a Glance. December 2006.

Retrieved March 16, 2010, from http://web.mit.edu/fnl/volume/192/century.html

Reis, A. (2008). Video games and the brain. Science Teacher. 75 (4), 19-21. Retrieved February

15, 2010, from Ebsco Host database.

Taffala, Richard J. (2007). Gender Differences in Cardiovascular Reactivity and Game

Performance Related to Sensory Modality in Video Game Play. Journal of Applied Social

Psychology. 37 (9), 2008-2023. Retrieved February 17, 2010, from Ebsco Host database

Winn, J. & Heeter, C. (2009). Gaming, gender, and time: who makes time to play? Sex Roles,

61 (1/2), 1-13. Retrieved February 15, 2010, from Ebsco Host database.

Yaroschuk, Tom; Maday Charlie. (2007). Modern Marvels: Video Games Behind the Fun

[documentary]. United States: The History Channel.

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