According to a new study from the Pew Research Center, 59 percent of girls play video games, but they’re far less likely to interact directly with fellow gamers. While nearly four out of 10 gaming boys share their gaming handle and other bits of information with new online associates, only 7 percent of girls do; 28 percent of girls turn on their mics to communicate directly with peers in the game. In contrast, 71 percent of boys turn on their mics.
While the study itself did not speculate why girls are more introverted in the gaming world, others have. “There is just a huge gulf in the hassle factor,” writes Slate‘s Amanda Marcotte. “For women and girls, playing with friends, at least if you’re in a mixed-gender group, means that your performance is under a lot more scrutiny and that any failures are more likely to be blamed on your gender than if you were a guy…If you’re online and other players realize you’re female, it can be even worse, with men saying abusive things to you just because of your gender. Games are supposed to be fun, so it’s not surprising that girls will gravitate toward modes of play that avoid all this stress.” (Slate)