Pwning the Newbs: Cyberbullying and the Culture of Online Gaming Platforms

Background and Purpose:

Existing definitions of cyberbullying have understandably focused on the behaviour of those involved, particularly on power dynamics and differences between perpetrators and victims (Barlinska et al., 2013; Olweus, 2013).  However, this research typically does not account adequately for the highly variable cultures of the platforms (online spaces) where such interactions play out.  Part of a larger study on cyberbullying, this investigation considered the impact of platform culture on youth’s experiences and perceptions of online gaming.

Methods:

This qualitative investigation employed data from Phase One of a mixed-methods longitudinal cyberbullying study on students in three age-cohorts in a North American city.  In partnership with a School Board, the parent study utilized stratified random sampling based on grade and board-level measures of socio-demographic factors affecting student success.  Nineteen schools participated (n=684).  Sixty students were purposefully selected for interviews [male (n=26), female (n=34); 4^th (n=19), 7^th (n=22), 10^th(n=19) grades] used in the qualitative analysis.  Students were selected on: age, gender and cyberbullying experience.  Qualitative content analysis (QCA) was utilized – a flexible analytical approach, suitable when meanings are unstandardized and interpretation is required (Schreier, 2012).  QCA is most appropriate for selective focus on particular aspects of the available material, in this case online gaming platforms.

Results:

Swearing, insults and other verbal violence emerged as omnipresent on online gaming platforms, as was fighting among players and other behaviours which expressed dominance (e.g., singling out and injuring a player’s character).  This behaviour seemed especially typical of older youth, and was often aimed at younger or newer (less competent) players – ‘newbs’.  Aggressive players were generally strangers to their victims.  Participants suggested aggressors’ behaviour was facilitated by anonymity, and motivated by aggressors’ personal circumstances (rather than any action by the victim).  Participants often did not consider such behaviours bullying or did not find instances of aggression especially impactful, likely due to the ubiquity of these incidents in online gaming.  Nevertheless, participants’ responses to such aggression (e.g., turning off or not playing the game) indicate that these experiences did impact youth negatively.  Moreover, several students indicated that these experiences made them more likely to behave aggressively, as the platform culture permitted or encouraged such actions.  While some discussed proactive responses by platforms (e.g., reporting functions), many ways of avoiding mediation and oversight were identified.

Conclusions and Implications:

Analysis indicated that the culture of online platforms may play an important role in students’ perceptions and likelihood to describe their experiences as cyberbullying.  This has significant implications for social work research, as youth’s self-definition of cyberbullying may influence their responses to measures of such activities.  Research must consider how online platforms may inhibit or encourage certain behaviours, ideally informing policy on these types of platforms.  There are also salient implications for social work practice, as clinicians working with youth who participate on online gaming should be aware of the potential impact of exposure to these types of experiences on young clients (e.g., platform avoidance and/or aggressive behavior).