The Stoic Male: How Avatar Gender Affects Help-Seeking Behavior in an Online Game

Games and Culture, 7(1) 29-47, 2012

19 Pages Posted: 28 Jan 2015

See all articles by Mika Lehdonvirta

Mika Lehdonvirta

University of Tokyo

Yosuke Nagashima

University of Tokyo

Vili Lehdonvirta

University of Oxford - Oxford Internet Institute

Akira Baba

University of Tokyo

Date Written: 2012

Abstract

Men are more reluctant to seek help for their problems than women. This difference is attributed to social expectations regarding the male gender role. Today, helpseeking is moving online: instead of traditional peer groups and counselors, people depend on online communities and e-counselors. But online users can appear in guises that differ from their physical sex. An empirical study was conducted in an online game to examine whether users’ avatars’ gender influences how they seek and receive help. Analysis is based on user-to-user communications and backend data. Results indicate that male avatars are less likely to receive sought-for help than female avatars and more likely to be the recipients of indirectly sought help. The authors conclude that avatar gender influences help seeking independent of physical sex: Men overcome their inhibition for help seeking when using female avatars. Practitioners should ensure that means for indirect help seeking are available in order not to exclude male-pattern help seekers.

Keywords: prosocial behavior, gender, online games, avatars, anonymity, identity, online therapy

Suggested Citation

Lehdonvirta, Mika and Nagashima, Yosuke and Lehdonvirta, Vili and Baba, Akira, The Stoic Male: How Avatar Gender Affects Help-Seeking Behavior in an Online Game (2012). Games and Culture, 7(1) 29-47, 2012, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2501259

Mika Lehdonvirta

University of Tokyo ( email )

Yayoi 1-1-1
Bunkyo-ku
Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8657
Japan

Yosuke Nagashima

University of Tokyo ( email )

Yayoi 1-1-1
Bunkyo-ku
Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8657
Japan

Vili Lehdonvirta (Contact Author)

University of Oxford - Oxford Internet Institute ( email )

1 St. Giles
University of Oxford
Oxford, Oxfordshire OX1 3JS
United Kingdom

HOME PAGE: http://www.oii.ox.ac.uk

Akira Baba

University of Tokyo ( email )

Yayoi 1-1-1
Bunkyo-ku
Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8657
Japan

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