Why female only gaming groups?
I would like to first point out that I'm not a very social person. There are various personal reasons as to why, but I do think it has to do with how I view myself.
I use to think I didn't need to bond on a gender level and never believed that it would make a difference until I tried it. My first all girl gamer group took place during a raid in an MMO -- It was a breath of fresh air. It was very different then being in a mixed or "one girl"-in-a-guy group situation. I've also participated in a real life girl group (put together by a co-worker) but I found it extremely dull, and I didn't identify with them at all.
Overall, I valued that online experience because I believe that variety in social experiences gives me an opportunity to learn things about others, and perhaps more about myself through others.
Most online articles about women in gaming are quick, and even eager, to illustrate the pain-points of being a woman in the gaming world, but they're editorials so I can easily forgive them for it. The articles do have broader idea about them: "social skills". Not so much as a lack of on our male counter parts, but rather a difference in types and levels of social skills from group to group. Such articles also point out another idea: you get different types of social interactions based on the different kinds of groups you're in.
Gender isn't the only key factor, but it is a basic one for forming groups. Common group forming influences include age, race, religion, political views, geographical locations, personal interests, professional interests. etc. These also happen to be factors that would describe an individual.
[[warning social psychology babble starts here]]
The point that I'm getting at is that a central assumption in many 'theories of the self' in social psychology is that individuals seek to verify their self-views through interaction. Individuals seek to confirm self-views and will work to maintain those relationships and situations in which they experience self-verification. This verification is sought even when one's self-views are negative. (for example, support groups for those who suffer from depression).
[[end social psychology babble]]
I'm gonna say something that I usually don't tell others on the online world at the risk of sounding like I'm complaining or worse whining about it. I will preface the following: I'm aware of how things are, and I accept it.
I often feel doubly "out of place" in most gaming groups. The primary reason (and the one you already know) is that I'm female, which is the easiest to remedy because there are other women gamers out there. The second reason is that I'm Filipino American, the first generation of my family born in America. I don't know about you, but its sure darn hard to find a Filipina gamer who lives near me and plays the same games that I do. I also take careful measures to never tell others in-game that I'm Asian. Especially in MMOs, there is a lot of animosity toward Asian gamers because of bad reputations created by Chinese platinum farmers.
There is a positive site to all of this, I also define myself as "just a gamer". Being a gamer in this age is great, because its very easy to find social groups on-line and off-line. I guess that's good enough for me.
So here's where I drive it home: My definition of who I am dictates which social groups I will seek because it helps verify my self-identity.
I use to think I didn't need to bond on a gender level and never believed that it would make a difference until I tried it. My first all girl gamer group took place during a raid in an MMO -- It was a breath of fresh air. It was very different then being in a mixed or "one girl"-in-a-guy group situation. I've also participated in a real life girl group (put together by a co-worker) but I found it extremely dull, and I didn't identify with them at all.
Overall, I valued that online experience because I believe that variety in social experiences gives me an opportunity to learn things about others, and perhaps more about myself through others.
Most online articles about women in gaming are quick, and even eager, to illustrate the pain-points of being a woman in the gaming world, but they're editorials so I can easily forgive them for it. The articles do have broader idea about them: "social skills". Not so much as a lack of on our male counter parts, but rather a difference in types and levels of social skills from group to group. Such articles also point out another idea: you get different types of social interactions based on the different kinds of groups you're in.
Gender isn't the only key factor, but it is a basic one for forming groups. Common group forming influences include age, race, religion, political views, geographical locations, personal interests, professional interests. etc. These also happen to be factors that would describe an individual.
[[warning social psychology babble starts here]]
The point that I'm getting at is that a central assumption in many 'theories of the self' in social psychology is that individuals seek to verify their self-views through interaction. Individuals seek to confirm self-views and will work to maintain those relationships and situations in which they experience self-verification. This verification is sought even when one's self-views are negative. (for example, support groups for those who suffer from depression).
[[end social psychology babble]]
I'm gonna say something that I usually don't tell others on the online world at the risk of sounding like I'm complaining or worse whining about it. I will preface the following: I'm aware of how things are, and I accept it.
I often feel doubly "out of place" in most gaming groups. The primary reason (and the one you already know) is that I'm female, which is the easiest to remedy because there are other women gamers out there. The second reason is that I'm Filipino American, the first generation of my family born in America. I don't know about you, but its sure darn hard to find a Filipina gamer who lives near me and plays the same games that I do. I also take careful measures to never tell others in-game that I'm Asian. Especially in MMOs, there is a lot of animosity toward Asian gamers because of bad reputations created by Chinese platinum farmers.
There is a positive site to all of this, I also define myself as "just a gamer". Being a gamer in this age is great, because its very easy to find social groups on-line and off-line. I guess that's good enough for me.
So here's where I drive it home: My definition of who I am dictates which social groups I will seek because it helps verify my self-identity.