The Lara phenomenon: Powerful female characters in video games

被引:85
作者
Jansz, Jeroen
Martis, Raynel G.
机构
[1] Univ Amsterdam, Amsterdam Sch Commun Res, NL-1012 CX Amsterdam, Netherlands
[2] Univ Netherlands Antilles, Fac Social & Econ Studies, Willemstad, Curacao, Neth Antilles
关键词
video games; gender; race; stereotypes;
D O I
10.1007/s11199-006-9158-0
中图分类号
B844 [发展心理学(人类心理学)];
学科分类号
040202 ;
摘要
The content of games is an understudied area in social scientific research about video games. The purpose of the present study is to contribute to the understanding of the portrayal of gender and race in games. Previous research on game content has revealed that stereotypical masculine characters dominate video games and that those characters are generally White. Nowadays, quite a few video games have women in leading parts; Tomb Raider's Lara Croft is the prototypical example. In our study we investigated the so-called 'Lara phenomenon,' that is, the appearance of a competent female character in a dominant position. We also studied the portrayal of men and the race of both male and female characters. We did a content analysis on the introductory films of 12 contemporary video games. Our results show that female characters appeared as often in leading parts as male characters did. They were portrayed with a sexualized emphasis on female features. Most game characters belonged to the dominant White race, the heroes exclusively so.
引用
收藏
页码:141 / 148
页数:8
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