Study squashes myth of gamer as antisocial

[compfreak847]

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081022-study-squashes-myth-of-gamer-as-antisocial-comic-book-guy.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gaming has long been the domain of nerds and geeks. For many years, gamers were painted as ostracized, antisocial, self-loathing recluses who were incapable of making meaningful human contact, instead delving deep into imaginary digital worlds to escape reality. But that stereotype is quickly changing as more and more people start to game, and a new study goes as far as claiming that gamers are "more social, more active, and more valuable as consumers" than non-gamers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interesting article, from a fairly reliable source. A good read, if nothing else.

[Lenticular_J]

Yeah, nowadays its uncommon to find a person who doesn't play videogames at least somewhat frequently. By the time my generation reaches their thirties and forties, our Presidents will be using Halo references.

[Kenshinjapan]

I don't like these kinds of studies. It makes the "average" non gamer that ridiculed us core players empowered and not feel weird even though they're taking over what they once stamped as freakish. They did the same thing with comic book heroes by putting them in movies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I wonder what'd they do if all us hardcore gamers overtook their hobbies and turned them into freakshows :twisted: !

[Lenin64]

"self-loathing"? :|

[Lenticular_J]

I wonder what'd they do if all us hardcore gamers overtook their hobbies and turned them into freakshows :twisted: !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alas, the typical hard-core gamer still has some trouble spiraling a football or playing beer pong.

[compfreak847]

 

I wonder what'd they do if all us hardcore gamers overtook their hobbies and turned them into freakshows :twisted: !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Alas, the typical hard-core gamer still has some trouble spiraling a football or playing beer pong.

 

 

 

Because, of course, these are valuable life skills that will benefit the hard core gamers much more then the fact that their earning a much higher income.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, the 'hard core gamer' type is 9% more likely to play sports, so that effectively nukes the football argument. They didn't do any studies on drinking skills, so I guess the ex jocks might still have the advantage in that area.

[Lenticular_J]

I thought, by hard-core gamers, we're talking about the kids that sit in their basements eating hot pockets until they're thirty. Not smart people.

[Ouchy]

Doesn't surprise me too be honest. All most everyone I know plays a game of some sort regularly, unless they are like me and spend all there time using Paint.Net (Photoshop like program) :anxious:

[Inuashakent]

I noticed this after EVERYBODY was talking about Brawl on the first week or release, and how everybody is talking about Halo, and Cocka Dukie. (Call of Duty)

[Azvareth]

All hardcore gamers I know of are anti-social up to the point where people don't socialise with them anymore. They're weird.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm glad our taxes don't go into funding studies like these.

[pryomancer]

Moved.

[Riku3220]

Yeah, nowadays its uncommon to find a person who doesn't play videogames at least somewhat frequently. By the time my generation reaches their thirties and forties, our Presidents will be using Halo references.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"We will finish the fight!" :XD:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

i can't wait for that day

[ThurinEthir]

Yeah, nowadays its uncommon to find a person who doesn't play videogames at least somewhat frequently. By the time my generation reaches their thirties and forties, our Presidents will be using Halo references.

 

 

 

And before declaring wars, they'll use Civilizations to simulate it, to find out the outcome.

 

 

 

To be honest, isn't communicating online a form of social activity? So aren't online players pretty social?

 

 

 

If not...Well, just about everyone at my school has some console, 5 years ago I doubt half the school did. I find that a lot of them play sports games, a bit of Halo and all that. But as far as I know, there are very, very few hardcore gamers at my school. Even fewer hardcore PC gamers.

[Nadril]

 

Yeah, nowadays its uncommon to find a person who doesn't play videogames at least somewhat frequently. By the time my generation reaches their thirties and forties, our Presidents will be using Halo references.

 

 

 

And before declaring wars, they'll use Civilizations to simulate it, to find out the outcome.

 

 

 

To be honest, isn't communicating online a form of social activity? So aren't online players pretty social?

 

 

 

If not...Well, just about everyone at my school has some console, 5 years ago I doubt half the school did. I find that a lot of them play sports games, a bit of Halo and all that. But as far as I know, there are very, very few hardcore gamers at my school. Even fewer hardcore PC gamers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah I think the study is mostly looking at the growing trend of online gaming, which often times really emphasizes working with other players. Either way I think this study was largely a waste of time because anyone could have easily come to the same conclusion. With the advent of online gaming it is pretty hard to be an anti-social gamer, unless you just sit alone and play single player games.

[BlueLancer]

Don't want to bash on anyone, but I must 100% agree with Azvareth purely based on personal experience... I know 2 'pro' gamers in real life (one of which actually gets money to participate in CounterStrike source tournaments with a clan), and even though they likely have never even met each other, are... Very elitistic and antisocial. Well, the only reason they'll even talk to me, is because I was sort of helping them in school with some subjects back when I was younger... But I think they view it as a burden

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It would be idiotic to generalize all hardcore gamers as freaks, but the ones I know really are weird... They don't have any human contact even with their parents or siblings, bar maybe the pizza courier, and get really agitated even if you message them online while they play (I don't want to imagine their reaction if you were actually sitting next to the guy)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Probably nobody on tip.it fills the criteria for 'hardcore gamer', I doubt anyone here plays a single upwards to 20 hours per day regularly, for up to months/years. A 'gamer' is just an average person though, if you're 'hardcore' anything, it pretty much excludes you from regularity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's not discriminating; Think; If someone is a hardcore chess player, heck, even hardcore piano/instrument player, are they going to live normal lives? I'm not saying a 'normal life' is the best, but if you devote almost all of your time to a single activity, your career and social life *must* suffer as a consequence, almost always.

[Faux]

I still don't understand how people can't grasp having a life while playing some video games.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, the 'hard core gamer' type is 9% more likely to play sports, so that effectively nukes the football argument. They didn't do any studies on drinking skills, so I guess the ex jocks might still have the advantage in that area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's just a nicer way of saying 91% of hardcore gamers are losers.

[1_man_army]

I think you have to differentiate gamers from hardcore gamers. There are a huge number of casual gamers who play now and then but hardcore gamers I find are a bit anti-social.

[Abelmisi]

I still don't understand how people can't grasp having a life while playing some video games.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, the 'hard core gamer' type is 9% more likely to play sports, so that effectively nukes the football argument. They didn't do any studies on drinking skills, so I guess the ex jocks might still have the advantage in that area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's just a nicer way of saying 91% of hardcore gamers are losers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WHAT? Mind explaining how you managed to come to that conclusion? /facepalm

[Faux]

WHAT? Mind explaining how you managed to come to that conclusion? /facepalm

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[bleep], mind fart. I read that as 9% of hardcore gamers are more likely to play sports :lol:

[Giordano]

Well its not suprising...more and more people are playing video games; its not frowned upon anymore in my school.

[aquariusman]

The only reason video games are becoming more common is online play. I know I would be rarely playing without it. Gaming is common for the average person under 30 nowadays. I don't really think that the truly hardcore players have changed though. These aren't the players that see games as a way to have fun, they see it as their life style. This study is useless, at best it lets casual gamers not feel guilty about playing video games, if they would have such thoughts. Seems like the report is just trying to convince non-gamers that gaming is cool. [Casual] Gamers making more money? I think they have the dependent and independent variables backwards there. It's not that people make more money because they are gamers, it's that they become gamers because they have the money that lets them pay for the system, games, online service, accessories, etc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

37 percent of gamers said friends and family relied upon them to stay up-to-date about movies, TV shows and the latest entertainment news, compared to only 22 percent for nongamers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How does this matter?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gamers are 13 percent more likely to go out to a movie, 11 percent more likely to play sports, and 9 percent more likely to go out with friends than nongamers

 

 

 

Oooh, a whole 10%. Big deal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• [*:44e1dj9b] Gamers are twice as likely as nongamers to buy a product featuring new technology even if they are aware that there are still bugs
   
   
   
  [*:44e1dj9b]Gamers are also twice as likely as nongamers to pay a premium for the newest technology on the market
   
   
   
  [*:44e1dj9b]Gamers also consume media in different ways than nongamers, with hardcore gamers spending five more hours on the Internet, two more hours watching television and two more hours listening to music than nongamers per week

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good to see we're being treated as walking wallets.

[darkblade986]

 

 

 

 

 

 

37 percent of gamers said friends and family relied upon them to stay up-to-date about movies, TV shows and the latest entertainment news, compared to only 22 percent for nongamers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How does this matter?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Video Gamers keep up with new sources of entertainment, etc, because it would probably coincide with most of what they do in the first place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gamers are 13 percent more likely to go out to a movie, 11 percent more likely to play sports, and 9 percent more likely to go out with friends than nongamers

 

 

 

Oooh, a whole 10%. Big deal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When you realize the total number of people this study likely relates to, yes, it is. If I were to say that 10% of Americans do not drink any Soda/Pop on any given day, that still means 30 million people, roughly. When taken as a statistical number, perhaps it's not much, but put into perspective and it can be quite significant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• [*:1y99n0sv] Gamers are twice as likely as nongamers to buy a product featuring new technology even if they are aware that there are still bugs
   
   
   
  [*:1y99n0sv]Gamers are also twice as likely as nongamers to pay a premium for the newest technology on the market
   
   
   
  [*:1y99n0sv]Gamers also consume media in different ways than nongamers, with hardcore gamers spending five more hours on the Internet, two more hours watching television and two more hours listening to music than nongamers per week

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Good to see we're being treated as walking wallets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Consumer spending is the source of economic growth, and to be quite frank, America needs help with that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I like this study because it means that no longer can we (read "video gamers") be portrayed as the nerd with the square classes and tape across the bridge. This shows that we are more likely to actually do productive things with our time and within society than people claim we are when we sit on our butts and play these games.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To criticism about 9% playing sports - I read that as an attempt to play sports, not necessarily a natural ability to play it as pros. I can relate to that statistic, because I am actually relatively obese and lazy, yet Gym/P.E. was always one of my more favorite classes in school. I wanted to play those games; I wanted to participate in sports; I didn't care I wasn't necessarily good because I played for the entertainment. When we played flag football, I couldn't catch the ball 95% of the time and I couldn't cover a receiver worth crap. But I didn't care because I was actually playing. (I'm beginning to rant... moving on)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

@BlueLancer - of course your friends are going to act elitist. They're getting paid to play video games; the rest of us play for entertainment. Because they're getting paid, it "means" that they are obviously better than the rest of us and deserve it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And on a disclaimer note: I realize this whole post may have come off a little rantish and mean sounding, but it wasn't intended to sound mean. The idea was that finally the stereotypes that have been held against me have been proven wrong and I'm glad about it.

[Lenticular_J]

Well, how many gamers did this study envelop?