User:Sa5mGonzales/sandbox

ADDING TO: Gender Representation in Video Games:
 My Wiki Topic : Gender representation in video games

BOLD = My Additions

Italic = On Wiki Page Already

Adding to section "Sexualization":

"The portrayal of women in video games has been the subject of academic study and controversy since the early 1980s. Recurring themes in articles and discussions on the topic include the sexual objectification and sexualization of female characters, done to appeal to a presumed male audience, as well as the degree to which female characters are independent from their male counterparts within the same game. Research on exposure to sexualized media representations of women in television and magazines has asked whether it reduces male compassion toward women, and reduces women's perceptions of their desire and suitability for various vocations." '''Sexual objectification and sexualization of these characters often leads to two harmful theme's in video games. Benevolent sexism, comes from treating female character's as simple-minded, delicate, weak, or small; and hostile sexism, that deals with the idea of women seeking to get what they want or trying to control men through sex or being sexy. Both of which are common attributes to the stereotypical portrayal of female character's in video games.'''

'''Female characters have been over-sexualized in video games for as long as video games have been around. We see examples of this sexualization through the pattern of characteristics that almost every female character has. For Example:'''


 * Big/Pouty Lips


 * Skinny Waist
 * Large Bust
 * Curves/Hips

All of these characteristics show an example of how society perceives women, and even sets an expectation of what our society considers "beautiful".

Add to "Prevalence":

''"In their 2005 study, Karen E. Dill and K. P. Thill distinguish three major stereotypical depictions of women in gaming: (1) sexualized, (2) scantily clad, and (3) a vision of beauty. The study revealed that over 80% of women in video games represented one of these depictions. More than one quarter of female characters embodied all of the three stereotypical categories at once. Dill and Thill also note that another prevalent theme with which women were depicted was a combination of aggression and sex, referred to as "eroticized aggression". According to sociology professor and researcher Tracy Dietz, women are often depicted in stereotypical roles that typically pertain to sexuality in which the woman focuses upon beauty/physical attractiveness. According to an analysis conducted by Downs and Smith, playable and plot relevant characters in the 60 best selling video games of 2003 were predominantly male. Females who were depicted were frequently sexualized. The female characters analyzed were depicted partially naked or with unrealistic proportions more often than the male characters were. A study of 225 video game covers found that both male and female character's physiques were over-exaggerated, but women were more "physically altered" (especially in the bust) than their male counterparts, and even more so if the female was the main character of the game".'' In addition, when female character's were depicted on game covers or advertisements, they were often shown as weak, sexualized, passive, and frequently more detailed and attractive when compared to male characters. During 1992, a study was conducted to analyze the front covers of different video game cases to compare how male and female characters were portrayed. For this study, researchers examined "47 video game box covers to compare gender portrayals, finding that male characters were represented over 12 times as often as female characters and that only male characters struck a dominant pose in cover art."

Add Sub-Heading with title "As The Femme Fatale" under Portrayal:
-Add definition for "Femme Fatale" : an attractive and seductive woman, especially one who will ultimately bring disaster to a man who becomes involved with her.

-'Depicting female game characters as the femme fatale'' allows women to feel empowered and dominant in relation to their male counterparts. Breaking the barriers of stereotypes, the femme fatale's inclusion in video games has helped to step away from creating an insulting and degrading image of women. As well as working towards a solution to show female characters as strong, smart, sexy, and independent in their own roles. Ada Wong, Lara Croft, and Samus Aran are only a couple of video games most popular and influential femme fatale's. Although the femme fatale exists, we still see a common storyline in a lot of games. Which includes the classic "Damsel in Distress" story, or a plot where the prince saves the princess. In these plots, we often see women portrayed as distressed, scared, and incapable of helping themselves when it came to escaping the villain or creature that held them captive.'''

Quotes/Info:
'''- "1,054 video game advertisements in three monthly video game magazines, reporting that male characters appeared more than three times as often as female characters." '''

- "Video games are a powerful and prolific medium. Video games offer an in-depth experience of a story and draw the viewer into the “other world” by allowing the participant to interact with, and have an effect upon, that world."

- "In a 2007 content analysis of video game magazine articles, female characters were significantly more likely to be characterized as helpless or innocent, less likely to be portrayed as powerful (e.g., a fighter), and had lesser abilities than male characters"

Annotated Bibliography:
1. Gaming Representation: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Video Games-


 * Malkowski, J., Russworm, T. M., & ProQuest (Firm). (2017). Gaming representation: Race, gender, and sexuality in video games. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

This book talks about the Femme Fatale, and how the inclusion of the femme fatale is important in video games because it broke the barriers of how typical female characters are perceived. The femme fatale represents a sort of empowerment of women in the video game and even film industries. She avoids the normal domesticity that on-screen women are confined with, she’s powerful, dominant, smart, and she had the sex appeal that any male audience could appreciate. The inclusion of femme fatale’s in video games are important for the representation of women, because the typical depictions of female characters have ranged from neglectful to insulting. Working towards a goal of creating strong, powerful, and playable female characters should be a strategy for the video game industry.

I think this information is vital to my additions to Wikipedia because it talks a lot about how women are perceived in video games, but also gives ideas and strategies for ways to create more equal representations of female characters. Making female characters with better “powers” than the male characters, making them just as detailed and capable, even having a wider selection of characteristics to choose from when creating your own character are things we could implement to make these characters less neglected.

2. Still a Man's Game: Gender Representation in Online Reviews of Video Games-

Ivory, J. D. (2006). Still a Man’s Game: Gender Representation in Online Reviews of Video Games. Mass Communication & Society, 9(1), 103–114. https://doi-org.manowar.tamucc.edu/10.1207/s15327825mcs0901_6

This journal talks specifically about the research geared towards video games, and analyzing the differences between male and female character portrayal. The findings of researchers have concluded that female characters are frequently objectified and over sexualized in comparison to male characters. It also talks about how video games in general are made for the male audience. This journal also talks about online reviews of video games, and how reviews from people that are frequent gamers can be helpful because their opinions of gender representation can be examined easily.

I think online reviews of video games can be helpful to my own research on this topic because of the infinite amount of information that people put on the Internet. The video game community is so vast, and it’s growing more and more everyday, especially with streaming become a more popular career path for women. With this in mind, I can analyze reviews on my own and compare the opinions people give of video game characters, male and female. Reviews can show the trends that exist in character representations, and how these depictions affect the gaming community or even society as a whole.

3. Big Breasts and Bad Guys: Depictions of Gender and Race in Video Games-

Dickerman, C., Christensen, J., & Kerl-McClain, S. B. (2008). Big Breasts and Bad Guys: Depictions of Gender and Race in Video Games. Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, 3(1), 20–29. https://doi-org.manowar.tamucc.edu/10.1080/15401380801995076

This article talks more about time, and how time has affected and shifted the overall viewpoint of video games, but also how much they’ve changed and evolved into part of our cultural footprint. In the 1970’s video games were viewed as nerdy, and were often associated with anti-socially lonely children, and a substitute for interaction with the outside world. Fast-forward to the 2000’s, and video games have become a multi-billion dollar industry that has changed the lives of thousands and thousands of people. Because this industry affects so many people, the way that characters of different genders, but also of different races are depicted is even more important.

I think time is an important component of gender representation because we live in a society that treats women more equally than ever before. Even if women aren’t completely equal still, we’ve made tremendous progress in the last 50 years. But because we’re closer to equality today, there’s no excuse for the depiction of female characters to stay as degrading and sexualized as they are usually shown. The evolution of video games themselves should also include the evolution of female characters and the abilities that they could have.

4. Female Video Game Players and the Protective Effect of Feminist Identity Against Internalized Misogyny-

McCullough, K. M., Wong, Y. J., & Stevenson, N. J. (2019). Female video game players and the protective effect of feminist identity against internalized misogyny. Sex Roles,, 1-11. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11199-019-01055-7

This journal focuses on misogyny and how video games affect women’s ways of thinking, like negative attitude and beliefs about women. The marginalization of females in games are connected to gender stereotypes, and this information pushes game developers to re-work their content and consider the impact that their characters have on their audiences, male or female. This journal also talks about specific video game studies, and how half of the games they researched showed the imprisonment, kidnapping, degradation, or over-sexualization of its female characters.

Although video games may cause some women to internalize misogynistic beliefs, some women that are more aware or educated on gender become less susceptible to the outcomes of gaming that are negative. This information is important to my topic because it talk directly about the effects that video games can have on women themselves, rather than how men’s ideologies of women cause a problem for gender representation in video games.

 Bibliography: 

Gaming Representation: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Video Games


 * Malkowski, Jennifer, and TreaAndrea M. Russworm. Gaming Representation: Race, Gender, and Sexuality in Video Games. Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana, 2017.

Still a Man's Game: Gender Representation in Online Reviews of Video Games


 * Ivory, James D. "Still a Man's Game: Gender Representation in Online Reviews of Video Games." Mass Communication and Society, vol. 9, no. 1, 2006, pp. 103-114.

Big Breasts and Bad Guys: Depictions of Gender and Race in Video Games


 * Dickerman, Charles, Jeff Christensen, and Stella B. Kerl-McClain. "Big Breasts and Bad Guys: Depictions of Gender and Race in Video Games." Journal of Creativity in Mental Health, vol. 3, no. 1, 2008, pp. 20-29.

Female Video Game Players and the Protective Effect of Feminist Identity Against Internalized Misogyny


 * McCullough, Keiko M., Y. J. Wong, and Natalie J. Stevenson. "Female Video Game Players and the Protective Effect of Feminist Identity Against Internalized Misogyny." Sex Roles, 2019.

Sexy, Strong, and Secondary: A Content Analysis of Female Characters in Video Games Across 31 Years


 * Lynch, Teresa, et al. “Sexy, Strong, and Secondary: A Content Analysis of Female Characters in Video Games Across 31 Years.” Journal of Communication., vol. 66, no. 4, Oxford University Press, Aug. 2016, doi:10.1111/jcom.12237.