[casual_games] Girls/women and casual games - a psychological study TBD.... input? ideas?

[Hal Barwood]

Hello, Andrea:

What an interesting project.  Among the many avenues you might try is 
contacting Nicole Lazzaro, who has done some work in this area.  For 
starters, take a look at her web site, xeodesign.com.

She notes that male and female psyches overlap more than they differ, an 
encouraging thought to all, methinks.

I would also get some numbers from Zynga, Playdom, et al., on the simply 
astonishing popularity of social games with a Tamagotchi hook, like 
Farmville -- 60 million plus players!  And, of course, women are bulking 
up that total, as with most casual/social games.

You might also want to investigate the huge fraction of slot machine 
gamblers that are women.  Check out Gary Rivlin's Tom Wolf-like article 
in the NY Times magazine in the 9 May 04 issue:  "The Chrome-Shiny, 
Lights-Flashing, Wheel-Spinning, Touch-Screened, 
Drew-Carey-Wisecracking, Video-Playing, 'Sound Events'-Packed, 
Pulse-Quickening Bandit."

I have been scratching my head for a while now trying to figure out why 
I never, ever, want to play Diner Dash (too quotidian, too much like 
work, too much like an assignment), and why many women feel just the 
opposite, and wouldn't go near a fantasy sci-fi adventure challenge. 
Let us know if you find out.

Cheers,

Hal




Andrea Lewis wrote:

> Hi all -

>  

> First, I did check the archives before  making this post and decided 

> that it would be worthwhile to poll opinion.

>  

> I am currently pursuing an MSc in CyberPsychology in the UK and would 

> like to do my thesis research on women and gaming, specifically casual 

> gaming.   My main issue/problem is that I have yet to carve out a clear 

> research question... however, I know the issues that have led me to this 

> topic and so I thought I would share and see if others might have 

> opinion or insight that would help me to get closer to my topic...

>  

> 1) I am tired of hearing that women/girls dont play video games

> 2) I am bothered that when I do hear discussions that acknowledge that 

> women play casual games, the next sentence often dismisses casual games 

> as "not real games"

> 3) I dont think that women only play "fluffy cute" games and are opposed 

> to killing, shooting, competitive games

> 4) I am curious about the biological differences in men and women that 

> may make one gender more inclined to a certain type of socialization, 

> but I think everyone is unique

> 5) I would like to uncover something profound about women and gaming culture

> 6) I would like to approach casual games and casual game play with a 

> seriousness that may have been overlooked in the past

> 7) I am interested in in-depth interviews with female gamers  as well as 

> with uncovering broader statistics

> 8) I am very interested in women and game addiction and how it might 

> differ from male game addiction (the predominant population currently 

> studied).

> 9) While my access may be limited, I am definitely interested in 

> cross-cultural and cross-generational aspects of female gamers

> 10) I think casual games kick ass.

>  

> So far, that is my personal hot list of why I want to explore this 

> area.  If it sparks something in you and you are moved to reply, 

> comment, argue, dismiss... by all means please do so -- whether here 

> publicly or privately to me...   Also, if you have come across research, 

> articles, books, please share as I am amassing an enormous list of 

> resources.

>  

> Thank you,

> Andrea

>  

> ps - I am a digital media project manager and recruiter, lived in NYC 

> and worked in the media industry for 10+ years before returning for my 

> masters... Now living in the UK, just ran into some old friends at 

> www.gamecity.org <http://www.gamecity.org/>... and, among other things, 

> games are a passion but I am by no means a "gamer" - I am a bit more 

> interested in the business and culture of games.  I also focus on women 

> as a population because, well, I am one.

>  

>  

> 

> 

> ------------------------------------------------------------------------

> 

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