2020
Apperley, Thomas H.; Gray, Kishonna L.
Digital Divides and Structural Inequalities: Exploring the Technomasculine Culture of Gaming Book Section
In: Kowert, Rachel; Quandt, Thorsten (Ed.): The Video Game Debate 2: Revisiting the Physical, Social, and Psychological Effects of Video Games, pp. 41-52, Routledge, 2020, ISBN: 978-0-367-36694-0.
Abstract | Links | Tags: Critical race theory, Cultural studies, Discrimination, Feminism, Inequality, Technomasculinity
@incollection{Apperley2020,
title = {Digital Divides and Structural Inequalities: Exploring the Technomasculine Culture of Gaming},
author = {Thomas H. Apperley and Kishonna L. Gray},
editor = {Rachel Kowert and Thorsten Quandt},
url = {http://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202101221639},
doi = {10.4324/9780429351815},
isbn = {978-0-367-36694-0},
year = {2020},
date = {2020-11-30},
booktitle = {The Video Game Debate 2: Revisiting the Physical, Social, and Psychological Effects of Video Games},
pages = {41-52},
publisher = {Routledge},
abstract = {This chapter builds on prior work on the discrimination and inequalities that characterize digital game cultures, drawing on work from cultural studies, critical race scholarship, and feminism. It focuses on how the dominant default able-bodied, anglophone, cis-het, white technomasculine culture of gaming shapes the gaming experiences of people who do not conform to the hegemonic norms that culture has established. The chapter illustrates the historical impact of technomasculinity on inequality and discrimination in the diffusion of gaming technology through a discussion of the how early adopters of Microsoft Xbox Live services impacted the experiences of Black users. The wider influence of technomasculinity on online and gaming cultures is further elaborated through the #gamergate
controversy. Finally, the chapter considers how the tactical responses from marginalized communities continue to challenge the hegemonic technomasculinity of gaming culture. This chapter argues that an examination of inequality in digital play demonstrates the need to shift the dialogue around
digital inequality beyond simply “access” to more nuanced understanding of the various matrices of exclusion that people deal with when using gaming technologies.},
keywords = {Critical race theory, Cultural studies, Discrimination, Feminism, Inequality, Technomasculinity},
pubstate = {published},
tppubtype = {incollection}
}
This chapter builds on prior work on the discrimination and inequalities that characterize digital game cultures, drawing on work from cultural studies, critical race scholarship, and feminism. It focuses on how the dominant default able-bodied, anglophone, cis-het, white technomasculine culture of gaming shapes the gaming experiences of people who do not conform to the hegemonic norms that culture has established. The chapter illustrates the historical impact of technomasculinity on inequality and discrimination in the diffusion of gaming technology through a discussion of the how early adopters of Microsoft Xbox Live services impacted the experiences of Black users. The wider influence of technomasculinity on online and gaming cultures is further elaborated through the #gamergate
controversy. Finally, the chapter considers how the tactical responses from marginalized communities continue to challenge the hegemonic technomasculinity of gaming culture. This chapter argues that an examination of inequality in digital play demonstrates the need to shift the dialogue around
digital inequality beyond simply “access” to more nuanced understanding of the various matrices of exclusion that people deal with when using gaming technologies.
controversy. Finally, the chapter considers how the tactical responses from marginalized communities continue to challenge the hegemonic technomasculinity of gaming culture. This chapter argues that an examination of inequality in digital play demonstrates the need to shift the dialogue around
digital inequality beyond simply “access” to more nuanced understanding of the various matrices of exclusion that people deal with when using gaming technologies.