#playalone

Why is there a reputation for anti-social, deviant behaviour, and general un-productiveness towards online gaming?

In an article reviewing the MMORG “Eve”, de Zwart & Humphreys (2014) states that,‘EVE is deliberately designed as a lawless frontier. Players are rewarded for ruthless gameplay, including murder, sabotage and piracy. 

How do players negotiate rules and norms of behavior within such a consciously amoral context?

In a public response by Eve management addressing the poor conduct of a highly rated player, the “Magic Circle” was considerably cited throughout the address.  The magic circle, first suggested by Huizinga in 1938, proposes all activity within a game is quarantined from the ‘real world’, and that in-game activities are inconsequential and removed from everyday life (de Zwart & Humphreys 2014, p.81).

Is the trajectory of social gaming i.e. starting as a community to what now appears to be of a society with online money and trade (via Interstellar Kredits), and consultative forums of players (such as Eve has), contributing to the blurring of lines between the real and virtual world?  

Gaming prompts a response that influences feelings of reward and pleasure (CBS News 2018). Can online/offline behavioral lines be crossed to achieve similar neurological response in both environments?  The relationship between aggression and exposure to violence in media is a long-standing debate I have with my gamer son (you can probably guess who’s on what side here).  

Goffman, a sociologist re-known for this contribution to social theory, suggests that we experience and negotiate life through a series of ‘frames’ in which we present different aspects of ourselves and perform different roles to different audiences. Also, we move between these different frames easily without even noticing (de Zwart & Humphreys 2014 p. 81).  Scary stuff!  

“Enough research and evidence has accumulated over the past few decades that 6 major professional societies around the globe together and concluded that research “reveals unequivocal evidence that media violence increased the likelihood of aggression and violent behavior in both immediate and long-term contexts” (Kassin et al, pp. 388-389 2014).

 Am I the only one who likes to play alone?

 References

CBS Interactive Inc., 2018, '"Gaming disorder" recognized as a mental health condition by World Health Organization', CBS News, 18 June, viewed 12 January 2019, .

de Zwart, M & Humphreys, S 2014,' The Lawless Frontier of Deep Space: Code as Law in EVE Online', Cultural Studies Review, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 77-99.