Gender related question?

[Reallycuriousgeorge]

Hey everybody I’m a student doing a research project on the gender bending experience in online gaming and I would like to ask anyone who is interested some questions on the subject. You don’t have to answer all the questions just the ones you are comfortable with.

My definition of gender bending: players who create a virtual identity of their opposite sex

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

Questions for people who don’t gender bend

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as? How would you respond?

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

 

 

Questions for people who do gender bend

What is your reason for gender bending?

What is the reaction that you get when you tell people your real gender is the opposite of your virtual gender?

When you play a new game do you automatically do it without thinking?

 

 

Question for everyone.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar?

 

[Syo Emerald]

Because I have a fine mood at the momen, I'll answer (we nearly drown in more good or bad surveys at the moment...I think you are number 3...just today):

 

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

- Could be more than one reason. The two that I hear the most: 1. To play a certain role in a roleplaygame 2. Because race/class X looks better with gender ABC.

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as? How would you respond?

- Most simply don't care. Games are not dating sides. And most players will never know who's behind the character they are talking to. At this very moment, you can't be 100% about my gender either.

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

- Most of the time it isn't needed to know each others gender. So most don't see a reason to tell everybody around them what gender they are. It isn't as they are lying, its just really not that important.

 

And yes, I do think the experiance differs, depending on the avatar. Female characters get a different reaction than male ones. Also in many roleplaysettings male charakters can take different roles than females. But thats just the same as if you would question if avatar race makes a difference. My elven lady gets a different reaction from the environment as my demoness.

[sirhc DeSantis]

Also in a good mood so in no order:

Because I feel like it.

No don't really care.

They do it because they want to as well and good for them

And the biggie - because we can.

[Alicia Sautereau]

1. Joke i got stuck with

2. They never saw it coming

3. No, but long term games now i tend to pick the female gender for a very simple reason: I don`t want to look at a male`s arse half the day, ali is cute and can look at her all day long (and so do others, wich is creepy if i wasn`t an arse)

3. I`ll throw in a freebie for your research: general male population is pretty dumb, specially the south american continent... "Ola Sex you???"
Tho "Your hot!" doesn`t go far either

4. No, you can`t date ali, she`s allllll mine!

5. Female avatars get away easy after making bad jokes...

[Czari Zenovka]

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

 

5. Female avatars get away easy after making bad jokes...

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Depends on who you're speaking with. :matte-motes-wink:

[Alicia Sautereau]

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Czari Zenovka wrote:

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

 

5. Female avatars get away easy after making bad jokes...

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Depends on who you're speaking with. :matte-motes-wink:

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Think i`ve killed the survey :matte-motes-bashful-cute-2:

Volunteering again? :matte-motes-wink-tongue:

[Czari Zenovka]

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

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Czari Zenovka wrote:

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

 

5. Female avatars get away easy after making bad jokes...

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Depends on who you're speaking with. :matte-motes-wink:

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Think i`ve killed the survey :matte-motes-bashful-cute-2:

Volunteering again? :matte-motes-wink-tongue:

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Who *whapped* whom most recently; in a friendly way of course. *Grins* (Spelled it right that time!)

[Alicia Sautereau]

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Czari Zenovka wrote:

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

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Czari Zenovka wrote:

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

 

5. Female avatars get away easy after making bad jokes...

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Depends on who you're speaking with. :matte-motes-wink:

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Think i`ve killed the survey :matte-motes-bashful-cute-2:

Volunteering again? :matte-motes-wink-tongue:

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Who *whapped* whom most recently; in a friendly way of course. *Grins* (Spelled it right that time!)

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So if i would take that advice, i should be twice as bleep`ed?

[Czari Zenovka]

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

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Czari Zenovka wrote:

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

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Czari Zenovka wrote:

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Alicia Sautereau wrote:

 

5. Female avatars get away easy after making bad jokes...

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Depends on who you're speaking with. :matte-motes-wink:

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Think i`ve killed the survey :matte-motes-bashful-cute-2:

Volunteering again? :matte-motes-wink-tongue:

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Who *whapped* whom most recently; in a friendly way of course. *Grins* (Spelled it right that time!)

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So if i would take that advice, i should be twice as bleep`ed?

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Not following you on that question. Ping-Pong - back to you.

[Alicia Sautereau]

Thankfully, it would have been a bad joke otherwise lol

(THAT comment)

[Dillon Levenque]

First Category (since I seem to belong there based on your definition)

1. Dunno. I've never played any online games. The only thing close to that I do online is Second Life.

2. Dunno about other people. Doesn't matter a bit to me.

3. Why would what I THINK have anything to do with what other people are about?

 

Second Category (which is how I think of myself rather than the definition you used)

1. It's who I am.

2. My RL gender is not the opposite of my virtual gender. They're the same. (You'll figure it out eventually if you care to.)

3. See my answer to Question 1 in Category 1.

Third Category

I have no data.

[Madelaine McMasters]

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Reallycuriousgeorge wrote:

Hey everybody I’m a student doing a research project on the gender bending experience in online gaming and I would like to ask anyone who is interested some questions on the subject. You don’t have to answer all the questions just the ones you are comfortable with.

Questions don't make me uncomfortable, it's my answers that sometimes bother me.

My definition of gender bending: players who create a virtual identity of their opposite sex

What is the opposite sex of someone born with both sets of gender bits?

What is the opposite sex of someone born with one gender's bits but the other gender's self identity?

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

It's nice to be appreciated. Thank you in advance. 

;-)

 

Questions for people who don’t gender bend

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

I suppose I'd have to ask them, which would require I know who they are. I don't think I'm terribly good at detecting them. I don't recall asking those who have confided in me, nor those who make it public. When people ask me why I'm kinky, I give them the same blank expression I see in the mirror when I ask myself.

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as?

Although this gets discussed frequently in the forum, I've had no direct experience with others "responding" to this issue. I don't know if that's because it's not an issue or because it's not an issue (Yes, that's obtuse, but I can't think of a better way to word it. Okay I can, but sometimes I enjoy being obtuse).

How would you respond?

That would depend on a lot more than just this particular revelation, so I can't answer.

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

If I knew one who volunteered the information and one who waited to be asked, how would I answer your question? Also, is waiting to be asked not being forthcoming?

Question for everyone.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar?

How could this be a question be for everyone? Only those who've played both male and female would be able to answer it.

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I appreciate your curiosity, George, but this is an interesting subject that might want the finesse one could imagine of The Man with the Yellow Hat. I hope that you'll get enough responses from others to sense a shape to this creature. So far it feels like a shmoo to me.

[Alicia Sautereau]

Don`t you mean Tin Foil Hat :matte-motes-wink-tongue:

[Marigold Devin]

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Reallycuriousgeorge wrote:

Hey everybody I’m a student doing a research project on the gender bending experience in online gaming and I would like to ask anyone who is interested some questions on the subject. You don’t have to answer all the questions just the ones you are comfortable with.

My definition of gender bending: players who create a virtual identity of their opposite sex

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

 

Questions for people who don’t gender bend

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as? How would you respond?

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

 

 

Questions for people who do gender bend

What is your reason for gender bending?

I like wearing a detachable pen

1s

, and moody AO.

What is the reaction that you get when you tell people your real gender is the opposite of your virtual gender?

I never tell them. It never comes up. I make a very believable

man.

When you play a new game do you automatically do it without thinking?

 

 

 

Question for everyone.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar?

Women

i

n lesbian clubs are just

plain meaner than women in non-lesbian clubs when I stray in as a male avatar.

 

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[VRprofessor]

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Reallycuriousgeorge wrote:

Hey everybody I’m a student doing a research project on the gender bending experience in online gaming and I would like to ask anyone who is interested some questions on the subject. You don’t have to answer all the questions just the ones you are comfortable with.

 

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I have some questions:

What university are you affiliated with?

What department/class are you conducting this survey for?

Do you have a faculty supervisor for this research?

Do you have approval from your institutional review board to conduct research with human subjects?

[Reallycuriousgeorge]

Responding to your questions:

1. NC State

2. Women and Gender studies

3. No, but I will be presenting my data to my professor

4. This isn't an experiment, its just gathering information

 

To everyone else, thanks for the responses, please keep them coming and I really appreciate you taking the time to look at this post.

[Melita Magic]

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Reallycuriousgeorge wrote:

 

Questions for people who do gender bend

What is your reason for gender bending?

What is the reaction that you get when you tell people your real gender is the opposite of your virtual gender?

When you play a new game do you automatically do it without thinking?

Question for everyone.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar?

 

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I have a male av I use very rarely for things like pose balls. When I had pose balls set on the ground for men or women to sit on, I needed to make sure the men weren't going to be halfway in the ground. Yes I could just switch to a male body shape but there were usually a lot of people around.

Once I took him out for a spin. He rode a bicycle around the SL roads for a while. I didn't talk to anyone else so I can't really say what people thought. I don't see a piont in going around saying "Hey! Everybody! This is me! This is me in my alt!" /scratches head

I took him for a spin because I had read in these forums a long time ago that male avs are invisible. It was nice not to have to worry about random guys IMing me though. I haven't had that happen for a while though even in female avs. Must be losing something. 

Don't know what you mean by "play a new game."

I can put prettier things on the female avatar. I mean it is a doll I use to go into a virtual world. I don't get very meta with it.

[Amethyst Jetaime]

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Reallycuriousgeorge wrote:

Questions for people who don’t gender bend

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

I don't play on line games.  In SL, a virtual world,  there are probably tons of different reasons.  I've never given it much thought.

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as?

If they knew some wouldn't care, other's would, particularly if its their partner or a date.  Some would freak out.and a whole lot of drama would ensue.

How would you respond?

Everyone is entitled to their own SL.  Its generally none of my business how they choose to live it.  I know who I am and I know who my partner is, so that's all that matters to me.

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

Some of each.  It depends on the person and why they are gender bending.

 

Questions for people who do gender bend

What is your reason for gender bending?

What is the reaction that you get when you tell people your real gender is the opposite of your virtual gender?

When you play a new game do you automatically do it without thinking?

 

 

Question for everyone.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar?

I can't speak to this in regard to games, but in SL probably about the same differences as there are in RL.

 

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[Windsie]

Questions for people who don’t gender bend

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

~I think there are many reasons why people choose to become the opposite gender in Second Life. Some find it interesting to see how opposite genders are treated. I think most likely you can get a pretty accurate view even in Second Life with this experience. I have known some who like to role play the opposite gender of what they are in real life. Then there are those who aren't pretending to be an opposite gender here. They are taking the form of the gender they feel they are on the inside, but are stuck in the wrong body in real life. Second Life offers them freedom to become who they really are on the outside as well.
These are just a few reasons I've encountered in the four years I've been in Second Life.


How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as? How would you respond?

~I can't say how others respond since I'm not them. I judge a person by their actions, by the type of person they are. Not by the gender they are in real life, or who they choose to be in Second Life.

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

~I personally don't feel it is any of my business and feel others should share only what they feel comfortable sharing with me.

Question for everyone.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar?

~I have never really thought about it since I really don't view it as "playing". I don't view Second Life as a game, but a world where people can let their creativity and imagination free and this includes becoming a different gender if they so choose. To answer your question...I think it is like in real life. Being female or male you experience different things just as you would in your everyday real life. Good and bad.

Might I suggest also taking the time to not only gather information in the forums, but perhaps actually log into Second Life as female/male and gather your own experience from this. I think first hand experience can be very beneficial to your own research, as well as give you a better idea of what Second Life is.

[Perrie Juran]

Why do you call it "bending?"

Do you realize that is insulting to bi-gendered people who are only being true to themselves?

The term marginalizes them.

[bb166]

I genderbend a lot (my most usual group tag reads "Gender Hacker"), I play avatars of just about every gender there is. So I'm gonna answer them all.

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

Tons of reasons:

The clothes are better

They like to experiment

They like to look at an avatar they're attracted to.

They don't want to be flirted with

They don't want to be thought of as inferior

They want to attract a romantic partner of a specific gender & orientation

Deceit

Roleplaying a character for a particular story/setting

They would like to be the opposite sex in RL

They are transsexual and SL is a place they can be themselves

 

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as? How would you respond?

Depends on the person. Often the negative reactions come from those people who use SL as a RL dating site. I'm always curious when I meet someone else who plays a different gender but I treat them according to the gender they're presenting (if it's apparent - it sometimes isn't). 

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

It varies. A few (including myself) are very forthcoming. Some will wait to be asked. A few will vehemently deny they're not that gender in RL.

What is your reason for gender bending?

A few reasons for me too, mainly I think I wanted to try out being what I can't be in RL.  Personal attraction comes into it a great deal; I'm very attracted to androgynous people.

What is the reaction that you get when you tell people your real gender is the opposite of your virtual gender?

I have included it in my profile and I tend to hang out in SL with people like myself most of the time, so in general I don't need to tell.  Most people are either interested and curious about it, or else they don't care at all. A small minority really get their knickers in a twist about it, but thats a sure sign that they are someone I am better off having nothing to do with. One time a guy called me a freak and muted me over it.

When you play a new game do you automatically do it without thinking?

I don't play computer games so this question doesn't apply to me. And no, SL is not a game.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar?

As a woman I get a lot more unwanted sexual attention than I do as a man.  In fact in five years of having male avies in SL I have never had unwanted sexual attention from anybody.  When in a sexual situation it's often assumed that if I'm female I must also be submissive, which is far from the truth.

On the up-side, I've found that people in general are more likely to talk to a woman than to a man. Not just sexual come-ons, but any kind of casual friendly conversation.

[Christin73]

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game? For males, SL has alot more options for a female AVI and people are more willing to help a female avi.

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as? How would you respond? well I am Trans in RL and am open about it even on SL. I get possitive responces.

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked? Yes I know I am. and find when I am open I find others who are the same.

 

 

Questions for people who do gender bend

What is your reason for gender bending? I am Transgendered in RL and like liveing in SL as my fem self.

What is the reaction that you get when you tell people your real gender is the opposite of your virtual gender? I often find other Trans people open up to me when I tell them. 

When you play a new game do you automatically do it without thinking?

 

 

Question for everyone.

How do you think the playing experiences differ between playing as a male or female avatar? Like I said in the first question, SL seems to have alot more to do for Female AVIs. Alot more cloths and even more help from people as oposed to male AVIs. There are more in world jobs for female AVIS also.

 

[Caitlin Tobias]

Seriously, the few times per week  I check this forum for interesting stuff,  I see these surveys. It is yet another reason to just avoid this forum more and more and more. Meh. 

Yes and I know I can scroll and skip it and do not even have to bother to reply, but sheesh, what a waste of what used to be a nice platform.

[Fayette Charron]

Questions for people who don’t gender bend

Why do you think that people want to play as their opposite gender on an online game?

  I think it varies, some people may play because they feel more comfortable as the opposite sex and can only do that in SL due to RL constraints, others because they want to create an "ideal specemine". Some to have an alt that they can work with in SL for pictures, design, etc.

How do you think people respond to players who are not the gender they play as? How would you respond?

   Personally I don't care if it's a male of female i'm talking to, so long as they are a nice person it doesn't matter to me. There are places where you see discrimination of people who are not the sex of their avie. A lot of clubs advertise for voice authenication to see what sex you are (which in reality can be gotten around in a number of ways). I know some residents can be weirder out by it sometimes, I've known some people who were worried about it because they didn't want to have a strong emotional attachment with someone who isn't who they appear to be in SL.

  

Do you think people who gender bend are forth coming or do they wait to be asked?

  Some are, some aren't. I've known a couple people who were in world as the opposite sex. Both of which told me. I think there is a level of secrecy in letting someone who if they are a man playing a womand or woman playing a man. Though there are a lot of good people in SL who couldn't care less if they are talkign to a man woman or alien here, but as in the world at large, you do see discrimination against those who are deemed "different"

 

 

Questions for people who do gender bend  (Though this only slightly applies I figured I would answer the questions anyway)

What is your reason for gender bending?

   I have an alt account, christianmartus, that I log into for creating male shapes and for picture taking.

What is the reaction that you get when you tell people your real gender is the opposite of your virtual gender?

   Those people I talk to I know on this account, and they know I am female. I have it plainly stated on my profile info under the christianmartus account that I am not male, and that he is an alt.

When you play a new game do you automatically do it without thinking?

   If I'm playing a gmae where you get to select your character I usually pic a female, mainly because there is often more time taken in creating their look and I think it's more fun to play the female characters in many cases.

[Melita Magic]

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Perrie Juran wrote:

Why do you call it "bending?"

Do you realize that is insulting to bi-gendered people who are only being true to themselves?

The term marginalizes them.

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