Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Gendering technology, gendering virtual worlds
Based off of our readings today, "Women and Games," do you think it is possible to "gender technology"? How is technology socially constructed? Do you associate certain virtual worlds to certain genders? Why or why not? Did you select your virtual world because a gender you have assigned to it?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteLydia Van Harlingen
ReplyDeleteI had never really thought about technology being gendered until we discussed it in class the other day. After pondering the idea, I believe that it is very possible to gender technology, just as toys and clothing are gendered. The internet and technology have become modern-day toys for children, so it is no wonder that the manufactures would find some way to gender the products in order to sell more. I believe that technology is socially constructed, as certain advertisements push certain technologies towards certain genders. By showing boys playing guitar hero on advertisements, or women going shopping on wii, buyers will be likely to purchase accordingly. After certain genders have been assigned to certain technologies and buyers buy accordingly, the pattern keeps going. The technologies mock the society that we live in, because that is what people know and are familiar with. I do associate certain virtual worlds with certain genders, such as the infamous World of Warcraft and Barbiegirls.com. These two virtual worlds are obviously targeted at specific genders as they conform to societies say of what makes up each gender. I have to admit that I chose to join Barbiegirls.com, because it was pink, girly and reminded me of what I didnt have as a little girl. World of Warcraft did not appeal to me, but I might just have society and good old gender roles to thank for that.
Lydia, you are right on in your discussion of WOW v. Barbiegirls. In the past, I've had students of "opposite" genders participate in each and their experiences were fun to read about. WOW most definitely does not seem too female friendly, nor does Barbiegirls seem conducive to male players.
ReplyDeleteafter our discussion in class about technology being gendered, i definitely recognized some of these obvious gender specified games and that guys are more likely to play certain games and women are more likely to play others. i definitely think that there are always exceptions to the rules, and different circumstances lead to the playing of multiple types of games. i especially believe that the new development of the Wii system has found a way to bring both genders together to play games that i think finally get kids off their lazy asses. for the most part i have found video games to promote a lazy lifestyle in children, and the wii is an interactive way for everyone to play together, no matter thier gender. on a different note, on virtual barbie which i am currently registered to, i have noticed that the games we can play are very girly, like "design your own clothing line" and easy games like puzzle solving and sudoku, which is my favorite...
ReplyDeleteDayahn Thomas
ReplyDeleteI guess i never really thought of gender being gendered as well. When i think of technology I think of it being able to be used at anyone's disposal, but i see now that gender can be centralized towards a certain gender. I feel like everything is gendered rather we notice it or not. I work in Macy's and i was looking in the housewares department and i saw all these different color mixers. the majority of the colors except for the black and gray one would typically be more appealing to a female and I really feel that that is because typically more women are the ones doing the cooking in their households. When looking at my virtual world which is an all girl world, I feel like gender plays a major factor in the world. All the games are in my opinion very girly games. Such as a game where you paint your avatars nails, a dress up game and a backing cup cakes game. Also your avatar can only appear to be a female but what i did discover that there are boys who play on the site as well. So eventhough the site is being gendered, it is still appealing to the opposite sex
I also hadn't thought about the idea of technology being gendered until we discussed it in class. But it really makes sense! We (as women) tend to think of video games, and the like, as "boy games" and not many women are interested in playing them. But with the development of new systems and technologies, the producers haven't gotten smart. It's like they realized that only this certain demographic was being drawn toward a huge seller and now are grabbing women into it. With the development of the nintendo DS and the wii fitness, and things like that, it's clear that games and devices are being developed to appeal to women. I definitely see some of this virtual world stuff as being more geared towards males. Definitely things like WOW and more action and fantasy based "games" as opposed to worlds where you just have to "live." I think the worlds where you have to basically build a life from scratch is more appealing to women (not to mention you can make your avatar super sexay!) because females tend towards relational building, family building, and just "doing" things rather than having clear-cut rules, goals and obstacles (which is more geared towards men).
ReplyDeleteKelly T
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't until we discussed it in class that I ever really thought about techonolgy being genderized. This could be because I liked all sorts of video/computer games growing up. I can see this happening though when i think of specific games. When looking at games like Call of Duty and Madden, I can clearly see how the person who created the games had the idea of the game being mainly for boys. I am not saying girls can't play these games, but when it comes to stereotypes and social norms, it's the boys that like the more manly activities such as football or anything involving shooting. Whe I was little there were games like My Little Pony, which were aimed for girls. I found them boring. The point I am getting at is I can see how games/technology can be genderized or viewed that way because of how they are made and stereotyped. Boys are thought of to like more outdoor, rough, sporty games, whereas girls are supposed to like the girly games that are not sporty or violent. Being that I like both, it is tough to agree completely on genderizing. I will say that I can see how some vitural worlds are geared towards one gender more than the other. World of War Craft, I say that's more geared towards boys. It is highly interactive and involves a lot of work. I don't understand it, bu the table of guys that play it in TUC sure seem to get it! Then looking at virtual worlds like Barbie, I say it is geared for girls.
I didn't pick my virutal world of Meez based on the gender I choose to do. I choose it because it looked interesting and not hard to figure out! I am wondering if any of the guys chose to do any of the websites such as Barbie or Club Penguin. I also wonder if any of the girls are playing World of War Craft and understand it!
At the beginning of this Second Life session, I set out to understand interactions between men and women in Second Life, and find out what it is like to be a woman. Right off the bat, I started in a sort of mall area and was greeted by a man named Dallas Jurassic. Aside from an awesome name, he was dressed in baggy jeans, a t-shirt with short spiky hair, earrings, and sunglasses. One could tell that he spent a long time on his appearance just as other people in Second Life have. We began chatting about common interests such as favorite music and TV shows.
ReplyDeleteAfter about 10 minutes of conversation, Dallas asked if I wanted to go somewhere a little more private. Knowing where this might go, I agreed to follow him to a house that he had created in order to see how he would ultimately try to seduce me. It was at this point I learned that avatars can actually have sex with other avatars in this virtual world. I quickly flew away without getting my virtual freak on, feeling violated.
I now know how a woman feels when a man makes a sexual advance on them. From the female perspective, I feel as if there can be little interaction with men in this world that will not eventually lead to sex, or sexual behavior. But isn’t that the point of all of this? I think that being a part of this virtual world is a way to escape real life, and do things that one would never consider in real life, such as have sex with a complete stranger you just met 10 minutes ago.
In an attempt to understand sexuality in Second Life, my next excursion will be into the seedy underworld of sex in the game.
I have always known that games were targeted to certain genders but never really open my eyes to it until our discussion in class the other day. After walking through the electronic store in Target the other day, I realized that most games are focused to one gender or the other. I could not find many video games or computer games marketed as gender neutral. I then went down the list of the different virtual worlds that we were able to pick in class to see if there was a gender bias. Virtual Barbie, Virtual Tyra, and Beanie Babies 2.0 all seemed to be feminine focused. The only one that I could see (based on the name) that would be targeted to just men would be World of Warcraft and maybe Club Penguin. I picked Habbo Hotel but not because of a gender bias but because of the learning curve and technology restrictions.
ReplyDeleteI definitely think that technology can be gendered. There are definitely instances when it is not and can be for both. However, it is just natural and normal for girls and boys to like different things and the people who make virtual worlds, video games, etc. and do the marketing for that all know this information. Sure, there are definitely exceptions. For instance, if a girl grew up with all brothers she may lean towards boy games. However, many times girls like fun, pretty, barbie-like stuff and boys like the guns and the sport-themed items.
ReplyDeleteIn order for technology to appeal to these two different groups, there needs to be changes between the two of them. There are definitely some virtual worlds that I automatically associate with males or females--I'm sure there is some crossover--but for the most part I think Barbie World, Alice in Wonderland, and the Precious Moments Precious Girls Club were all created for girls. Boys wouldn't have fun in these places. Boys would have fun in WoW and Ridemakerz.
These virtual worlds are definitely socially constructed too because they are advertised with girls or boys to appeal to either boys or girls AND then they are decorated in a way to appeal to whichever sex the virtual world is made for also. Barbie World = pink; pink is not going to appeal to a five year old boy. But camo and race cars are.
Besides some of the most intensive/fighting virtual worlds like WoW, I would say that most virtual worlds made for older people like Habbo Hotel or SecondLife are less gender oriented. Older people want to interact with the opposite sex and have fun; they don't want to just make a car or dress up a barbie; it's more about contact and communication. Because of this, I don't believe Habbo Hotel is designed for one or the other. I think it is designed for both males and females to come and have a good time.
Not always, but a lot of the time I definitely think technology is gendered, especally for younger kids.
Technology is definitely gendered in my opinion. Video games obviously being a big one. I hardly know any girls that get on xbox live to play call of duty or madden, and i dont know many guys who use their computers to shop either. There are lots of examples. As technological advances are made, the creators know who to aim them at and who is going to be interested. I remember all through my life a lot of times that groups of my friends wanting to be the first to buy some new toy or piece of equipment, and our female friends thought we were ridiculous. and similar things happened the other way around. Basically what im saying is that if technology wasnt gendered, then the people who create, market, and sell these things wouldnt be as successful
ReplyDelete