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Sexuality in the Video Games Industry

A total of 387 participants completed the 2019 Survey of Program Graduates. These individuals identified themselves as having completed or being in the process of completing a video-game-based program at a post-secondary institution. The participants included both undergraduate and graduate students.

Approximately 20% of respondents identified as LGBTQ+. When compared with data gathered in large nationwide surveys, this is significantly higher than the national average of approximately 4% to 5% for LGBTQ+ individuals in the United States.

“Being gay in the industry has shifted my career towards smaller studios and indie developers. Any time I’ve applied to larger companies, the ‘bro’ nature of them has defined, for me, ‘bad culture fit.’” – Game Designer

The high percentage of LGBTQ+ respondents in comparison with the general US population should not be dismissed as a statistical anomaly. Other studies that examine the sexual orientation and gender identity of individuals in the games industry have found similar distributions. The IGDA Developer Satisfaction Survey for 2017 Summary Report indicated that 25% of those who responded to their survey identified as LGBTQ+. Previous years of IGDA reports describe similar percentages. It is possible that there are factors at play that attract LGBTQ+ individuals to the video games industry.

Methodological circumstances may also explain the difference. For example, the percentage of those who identify as LGBTQ+ is consistently higher among young people, which would align with the younger nature of our sample. Furthermore, our survey guaranteed the anonymity of the respondents. Surveys where such assurances are put in place tend to have higher rates of people identifying as LGBTQ+. As part of the same question, we gave respondents who did not identify as LGBTQ+ the opportunity to indicate that they were an LGBTQ+ ally. Approximately 20% of respondents chose this option. Another 6% of respondents preferred not to answer.

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Job Satisfaction in the Video Games Industry

A total of 387 participants completed the 2019 Survey of Program Graduates. These individuals identified themselves as having completed or being in the process of completing a video-game-based program at a post-secondary institution. The participants included both undergraduate and graduate students.

The number of respondents who stated that working in the video games industry would be their first choice for a job dropped significantly the more years they spent in the industry. For example, at five years since graduation, the percentage of men who said that the video games industry would be their first choice for employment was 64%, compared with 95% of men who just graduated.

Women saw a much more precipitous decline, going from 85% to 40%. The rate drops particularly quickly for women after in the industry, falling from 90% one year after graduation to 64% after two. There could be many reasons for this. One might be the well-documented toxicity of some aspects of the industry to women—a factor already covered in-depth by both academics and games journalists.

It is also worth considering other factors that may be at play. Further research on this topic could shed valuable light on how people’s desire to work in a particular industry changes over time, and whether the trend stabilizes or potentially reverses over a longer period of time.

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Gender in 2019 Survey of Program Graduates

A total of 387 participants completed the 2019 Survey of Program Graduates. These individuals identified themselves as having completed or being in the process of completing a video-game-based program at a post-secondary institution. The participants included both undergraduate and graduate students.

Most of the respondents identified as men (70%), which is slightly lower than the rate reported in the 2015 HEVGA Survey (73%). There was a higher rate of respondents who identified as women in this survey (26%) compared with the 2015 survey (22%). Approximately 2% of respondents identified as non-binary, genderqueer, and/or third gender. Another 2% did not answer.

In a separate anonymous question not tied to the other demographic questions, we asked respondents “Do you identify as a transgender person?” Most people (76%) stated that they did not identify as a transgender person. 72% identified as cisgender, a term used when an individual’s gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth. 4% indicated they did not identify as either cisgender or transgender. A little over 10% of respondents identified as transgender—including as a transgender man, a transgender woman, or as “non-binary, genderqueer, and/or third gender.”

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Games Programs in Community Colleges & Universities

The total number of technical training centers, community colleges, and large universities with games courses and programs is considerable. In the US alone, over 520 institutions offered 1200+ game-related programs and degrees in 2018. An even greater number offered courses, but no program or degree. Meanwhile, the number of games-related programs in post- secondary institutions in Canada has increased ninefold over the past decade.

Survey respondents reported a dizzying array of diplomas and degrees. The percentage of respondents pursuing Bachelor of Arts degrees increased from 13% to 20%, while those pursuing Bachelor of Science degrees increased from 11% to 18%. Graduate degrees in game studies appear to have declined in popularity between the 2015 and the 2019 reports. With the exception of Master of Arts degrees which increased from 2% to 7%, there were fewer respondents pursuing Master’s and Doctorate degrees in game-related areas compared with those in 2015. The general improvement in the economy over this time may have been a factor in this decline, with more people entering the workforce shortly after graduation, rather than pursuing further education.

With respect to specific courses, respondents most commonly reported participating in classes on Game Design, Game Production, and Game Programming. Animation, Level Design, and 3D Modeling were also popular. Interestingly, fewer students reported taking critical game studies courses, compared with those in the 2015 HEVGA Survey. Given the remarkable challenges the games industry is facing in terms of equity, marginalization, and labor conditions, this could be a worrying trend.

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MEDIA INCORRECTLY REPORTS ‘GAMING DISORDER’ INCLUDED IN ICD-11

WASHINGTON, DC – June 25, 2018 – Recent articles circulating in the news concerning the World Health Organization’s (WHO) proposed ‘gaming disorder’ inaccurately report that it has already been included in WHO’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD). In fact, this is still only a proposed draft, currently under review by experts around the globe.

As researchers concerned with careful, evidence-based recommendations, we note that no definitive evidence has yet been published that links video games as a medium to a disorder deserving of its own classification.Without sufficient evidence, WHO will only repeat a cycle of media scares that we’ve seen before in books, music, radio, and television. In our opinion, WHO should first demonstrate the proposed disorder is not due to other underlying evidence-based disorders or diagnoses, as opposed to video games as a medium, before including it in the ICD-11. Not to do so has the potential to cause great harm to individuals in true need of other substantiated and effective mental health diagnoses and treatments. We urge WHO to consider the lack of evidence supporting a causal link between a disorder and the medium of video games prior to including it in the ICD-11.

In order to continue the conversation, HEVGA Vice President Lindsay Grace will be participating in a panel discussion at the Games for Change Festival this week on Friday, June 29 from 3:15-4:00pm ET. Other panelists include: Jennifer McNamara (Vice President of Serious Games, BreakAway Games), Kelli Dunlap (Mental Health Manager at iThrive Games, psychologist), and Victoria Van Voorhis (Founder and CEO of Second Avenue Learning).

Panelists will address WHO actions and the continued critique of games from social and scientific communities, present research findings and heuristics to critically assess claims, and equip attendees for meaningful dialogue around this classification driven by evidence, findings, and knowledge. A recording of the panel will be available to the public online following the Festival. If you will be at G4C, we encourage you to attend.

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HEVGA to host European Symposium at Gotland Game Conference June 7 & 8

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HEVGA Publishes Value Statement on Diversity & Inclusion

The Higher Education Video Game Alliance’s mission to support higher education in video games through information-sharing, resource development, and community engagement is underpinned by a commitment to openness and inclusion. We continue to work to foster inclusion and champion equity. HEVGA strives to increase dialogue and listening opportunities within our communities. We are committed to active intervention when members face discrimination, harassment, or other forms of exclusion.

To read entire statement, please click here.

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HEVGA PUBLISHES VALUE STATEMENT ON DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Thursday, April 19 – The Higher Education Video Game Alliance (HEVGA), through its Diversity & Inclusion Committee, published today the following value statement on diversity & inclusion.

The Higher Education Video Game Alliance’s mission to support higher education in video games through information-sharing, resource development, and community engagement is underpinned by a commitment to openness and inclusion. We continue to work to foster inclusion and champion equity. HEVGA strives to increase dialogue and listening opportunities within our communities. We are committed to active intervention when members face discrimination, harassment, or other forms of exclusion. We will advocate for students, faculty, administrators, programs, and institutions as well as affiliates who are disadvantaged based on race, gender, class, ability, sexuality, religion, nationality, and migration status.

One of HEVGA’s primary goals is to work to expand the narrow understanding of the culture of games and game playing, recognizing the importance of access and inclusion for all. Historical and contemporary trends in games construct a limited stereotype of what defines a “gamer,” and renders invisible the nuance within communities who make and play games. Across the games industry, media, politics, academia, and game communities, this distorted and limited sense of gamer identities results in the erasure or minimization of many active participants who fail to fit the falsely assumed norm. We seek to challenge the current status quo that grants privilege and access to those from specific backgrounds by working against the exclusion of the diverse practices of gamers, game makers, and games scholars.

HEVGA values varied perspectives, approaches, and experiences. We are committed to creating a culture that welcomes and supports all people. To facilitate this, we commit to fostering inclusion by:

• Participating in conversations and public debates to advocate for the interests of our members in all their diversity, by doing our part to ensure that important moments of potential dialogue do not result in silence.
• Conducting and sharing research on the history and current context of games education to reveal enduring problems and move toward positive ends.
• Creating spaces to support and promote the games work of members from a rich diversity of backgrounds, traditions, and cultures.
• Listening to our membership through email communication with the Diversity & Inclusion Committee co-chairs, regular open meetings with the committee, and the establishment of an online community amongst the membership to help facilitate dialogue and discussion as we develop safe spaces for diversity in games and higher education.
• Acting to amplify under-represented and marginalized voices through forums, advocacy, and help with professional development.

See our committees page for a list of Diversity & Inclusion Committee members. To contact the co-chairs, email Alison Harvey and Phill Alexander.

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HEVGA TO HOST EUROPEAN SYMPOSIUM AT GOTLAND GAME CONFERENCE JUNE 7 & 8

GOTLAND, SWEDEN – April 26, 2018 – Last year, as part of the Gotland Game Conference (GGC), HEVGA co-hosted the Game Educators Summit in conjunction with Uppsala University. The Summit brought together educators from across Europe to discuss the structure of Game Educations in Europe, our unique needs within and across borders, and how to best expand HEVGA in Europe.

This year, HEVGA is continuing to grow its efforts in Europe by holding our first annual European Symposium of the Higher Education Video Game Alliance on the beautiful island of Gotland, Sweden. Uppsala University has been chosen by HEVGA as the first school to host the symposium and will co-locate it with the Gotland Game Conference to maximize cross-pollination.

The two day symposium will take place on June 7 & 8. The first day will feature presentations across a wide variety of areas such as research, game educations, pedagogy, game design, games, institutional barriers and successes, within and across borders barriers and successes, and programs or initiatives unique to Europe. Slots are available in 15 – 45 minute increments.

The second day will consist of a working meeting designed to bring together diverse institutions and individual backgrounds to take stock of where games and game educations in Europe are at now. The working meeting will explore how to create a platform that can further establish a European games community in higher education across borders. Specific topics include: how to secure funding, creating a network that connects educations, amplifying local achievements globally, and avenues for unified advocacy.

To join us for the first European Symposium of the Higher Education Video Game Alliance hosted by Uppsala University, click here.