Papers by Lotte Vermeulen
Computers in Human Behavior, 2017
It seems that women stand outside game culture resulting in a low gamer identity profile. A nuanc... more It seems that women stand outside game culture resulting in a low gamer identity profile. A nuanced and detailed examination of how gender identity and threatening experiences tap into their play practices has hitherto been lacking however. The present study fills this gap by examining how female players express a gamer identity and how this relates to perceptions of threat and stigmatization. Based on a large-scale survey directed at female players, a statistical model is specified taking into account how respondents attribute a gamer label to their self-concept. Results suggest that the cognitive, evaluative, and affective dimensions of female identity predict gamer identification in distinct ways. Whereas the mere cognitive process of categorizing as a woman is not related to gamer identity, women who feel closely connected to other women are less inclined to self-identify as gamer. However, group appraisal of womanhood is positively related to identifying as a gamer. When taking into account stigmatization, experienced discrimination by male players seems to discourage women to label themselves as gamer.
The international journal of medical robotics + computer assisted surgery : MRCAS, Jan 3, 2016
Few telesurgery studies assess the impact of latency on user experience, low latencies are often ... more Few telesurgery studies assess the impact of latency on user experience, low latencies are often not studied despite evidence of negative effects, and some studies recruit inexperienced subjects instead of surgeons without evidence that latency affects both groups similarly. Fifteen trainees and fourteen laparoscopic surgeons conducted two tasks on a laparoscopy home-trainer at six latencies below 200 milliseconds (ms). Completion time and usability (perceived awareness of latency, inefficiency, disturbance, adaptability, and impact on patient safety) were measured. Weak correlation between completion time and usability was found. There was significant deterioration in performance and user experience at 105 ms added latency. Surgeons were more negatively affected. Objective measures insufficiently describe the impact of latency therefore standard measures of user experience should be incorporated in studies. Even low latencies may be detrimental to laparoscopic surgery. Results from...
Since the early 1990s there is a growing interest in research mapping the motivations for playing... more Since the early 1990s there is a growing interest in research mapping the motivations for playing video games. Several studies have looked into why people visit Multi-User Dungeons (Bartle, 1996; Utz, 2000) or play Massively Multiplayer Online Games (Yee, 2006a, ...
Computers in Human Behavior, 2016
The present study assesses the impact of stereotype threat on how women experience digital gaming... more The present study assesses the impact of stereotype threat on how women experience digital gaming in an evaluative context. By means of a controlled lab experiment, this study tested the effects of reinforcing stereotypical information suggesting that women are less competent players versus the effects of countering this stereotype. In doing so, game leaderboard scores were manipulated distinguishing between Stereotype Neutral (high scores without gender cues), Stereotype Boost (female-dominated high scores) and Stereotype Threat (male-dominated high scores) conditions. Results indicated that gamer identity, trait competitiveness, and playing habits modulate the experience of social identity threat. Performance and affective responses elicited by the Stereotype Threat Condition were more negatively affected in case of strongly identified gamers, highly competitive women, and/or avid players when compared with the other conditions. However, virtually no differences were observed when comparing the Stereotype Neutral and Stereotype Boost conditions. Overall, the present study demonstrates the existence of the stereotype threat mechanism and how this undermines the game experience of female players within digital game culture. Investigating stereotype threat in the context of women playing games.Women's gamer identity and play habits as important moderators for threat effects.Worse performance in threat condition compared to neutral and boost conditions.Increased negative affect in threat condition compared to neutral and boost conditions.Female role modeling does not guarantee improved performance or affective responses.
Gaming is rapidly gaining popularity as a pastime among women. One explanation for this could be ... more Gaming is rapidly gaining popularity as a pastime among women. One explanation for this could be the industry targeting female gamers through specific 'girl game' releases. This could imply that there are a priori differences in game design preferences between female and male gamers. The purpose of the present study is to explore these differences to see whether there is a mediating effect of previous experience with certain game genres on subsequent design preferences of male and female gamers. More particularly, we distinguish between 'core' genre players (CP) and 'non-core' genre players (NCP). By means of a 2*2 ANOVA design using an online survey, we examine the main effects of gender, core genre players (CP/NCP) and the interaction effects between both independent variables. The results show that game preferences of male CP, female CP and male NCP are generally in line with one another whereas those of female NCP differ significantly.
Over the past decade, a growing number of women have started playing digital games. However, ster... more Over the past decade, a growing number of women have started playing digital games. However, stereotypes are still prevalent in game culture. This study aims to gain insight into these practices by looking at gaming stereotypes on two different, yet interrelated, levels. First, we inquire into perceptions of gamers regarding gender-related and general gamer stereotypes and how these relate to playing frequency. Second, game genre choice is investigated in light of player's gender and how this is associated with playing motivations. Results of a survey study (N = 962) suggest that high frequency male players hold the least stereotypical ideas about digital gamers, while high frequency female players disagree the most with gender-related stereotypical beliefs. Additionally, we found that high frequency female players are more strongly drawn towards specific game genres, suggesting that playing motives of these gamers are higher than their beliefs that gaming is a typically male pursuit.
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Papers by Lotte Vermeulen