A recent study conducted by Pew Research Centre set out to find out just who is most likely to buy a video game console in America, and the results are actually quite surprising!



Interesting results chart, even if it does look a little too similar to a nutrition facts label


Behold The Power of Popular Opinion and Media

So we've been buying into a lie it seems, when we believed that the gaming community was predominantly male, not to mention the other non-gaming assumptions we could make based on these (hint: they have to do with gender and ethnicity wage differences), but we're not here to make assumptions based on numbers from some random survey...oh...wait...yes we are.

And on a side note, the same survey showed that handheld game systems were predominantly owned by younger gamers, and that the male/female ratio of handheld gamers was just about even.

Speaking of assumptions based on random surveys, perhaps now would be a good time to mention that random surveys also equal at least partially random numbers.


So How Might These Findings Affect The Game Community

Honestly, they probably won't. However one could speculate that this could encourage developers who make games that are blatantly sexist against women (of which there are too many, but really if there are any at all there are too many) to chill a little and realize that they're only hurting themselves by offending what could very well be the majority of game system owners. This could level the playing field and further the push toward less sexist content in gaming, as it shows that though the statistics lean toward women here, the numbers are practically even and so skewing to one base would be foolish for a company that wants to maximize profits (also known as every for profit company ever). Now if only money ensured intelligence.


The Other Side of the Coin


Monies!

So here we are saying that these statistics show that more women own consoles than men, but that isn't necessarily true. You see, these statistics and their adopters are missing a few rather important variables that weren't accounted for before publication.

Variables #1 and #2
•Age restrictions.

Who else noticed that no one under eighteen was surveyed? That's probably due to legal issues, but it's indeed a big variable to overlook in a survey like this.

Why age matters here
Imagine a single mom has a son who's just dying to get the newest Nintendo/PlayStation/Xbox console and Christmas time is coming up on her. Lucky ol' mom happens to muster up enough cash for their kid's dream console, and there you have it: son has a new console, but mom bought it. And here we have a male who owns a console but his ownership is credited to a female.
And so it is that we find huge gaping hole number one in this report.

Alternatively, how many males under the age of eighteen have saved birthday money, allowance, or even wages from part time work, and bought their own console? None of them are taken into account in this survey. I know I bought my first console before I was eighteen, and I guarantee that many others have done the same.

But then in all fairness, I'm sure a good many girls under eighteen have done the same. The only issue is that we don't know how many of each (boy and girl) do so on average.

And there, ladies and gentlemen, is missing variable #1 and missing variable #2. And we all know how messy things can get when you forget to take care of #1 and #2. Just ask baby Mario up there.


Variable #3
•The inevitable stereotyping of surveys.

Next up on the list: how many of you were contacted to participate in this survey? Anyone? Yeah, me neither, and yet here we are with statistics telling us all about ourselves.


"But how do they know me if they've never talked to me?"
That's what we call prejudice. Yes, I meant to say prejudice.

Prejudice literally translates (roughly) as "Already judged" (pre = before, judiced/judicial = judging. Again, roughly translated), or "having already determined what someone/something is like, before having become acquainted with them/it". Or simply put, any survey looks at a small percentage of the crowd they wish to learn about and assumes that this percentage faithfully represents the whole.

For example: a survey might say "eight out of ten Americans eat spaghetti", while the fine print informs you that this survey was conducted on 1,000 Americans between the ages of eighteen and sixty.

So 1,000 people can accurately tell us about the taste buds of roughly 319,000,000 people? No, no they cannot.

And so here we have another huge inconsistency with statistics surveys of any kind: they assume that if they know what a few of us are like, then they know what all of us are like. After all, all gamers are the same, right?.


Now That We've Picked Apart the Logic Behind These Numbers, Let's Try To Patch It Up A Little.

So the few don't represent the whole perfectly, but they do give us a decent idea of how things stand. All the logic hole poking tells us is that these numbers aren't exact, but they don't have to be exact in order to give us fairly accurate results. And there's no denying that these numbers do have some validity and show us that at the very least, women are definitely a large part of the video game community, and quite possibly even make up the majority of gamers. If the stereotype that gamers were guys was ever true, it isn't anymore.

Game on, boys and girls.

This really doesn't surprise me that women are high on the poles.

No, really. I mean, good moms, and wives are. . . always looking out for things to improve their home. My mom brings me home stuff she thought I might want just cause it was on sale. I. . . I really like that. It's very kind and considerate of her. . . I've gotten many games on sale because my mom found them in a store and called me. This pole makes total sense to me. I also think it's a good example of a pole that may seem to tell us one thing at first. (That men and women like gaming just as much as one another) But then it's really telling us another. (That women usually at least HALF the shopping. )

I never quite understood why such a thing mattered so much in the first place.

Whether more boys or girls play games or not, does that matter as much as the fact that any age group or gender will play a game if they enjoy it and like playing games, and there is no law as such dictating that only males can like games.

I don't believe the statistic is right in saying this at all, but hear me out before you judge me for being prejudiced in favor of the male gamer, as I know a ton of female gamers, myself. Instead, I put the blame on the overwhelming number of games that gear themselves towards men to begin with, with traits such as unnecessary gore or violence, cussy language, etc. just to be more favored by men who feel like they need to seem masculine (another social stereotype that I wish would be thrown out the window). And no, this is not every game. But allow me to then ask if you've heard this before. "If you play a Nintendo game, then you're a man child." Or, "Nintendo's only for four year old girls." Sadly, the social stereotyping of most "non-masculine" games fall into this trap, especially in the States. Even if it's not the actual majority, it certainly is the vocal majority.

What I'm getting at is that society is more likely to look down upon you for playing such games, and that could be an intangible factor for discouraging others to play such games.

And also, there's another variable that I believe you hinted to, but I feel requires its own explicit point: affordability.

Despite what people claim to say, not everyone in the world can afford a meal a day, let alone a $300 console. And what does that console need? A TV. While CRTs at second hand shops are only $20, let's see what you would need to connect this TV and console: working electricity and shelter. Suddenly, that console sounds less enticing to a number of people, most obviously the homeless in the case I just made. However, this applies to many other people, too. And then account the $60 cost of every AAA game.

I admit that a lot of my rebuttals are derived from guesswork, speculation, and conjecture. But I stick with them nonetheless.

Sword legion : I agree. I think the numbers show us a little on both sides. Also, my mom still does the same thing for me (buys me random stuff she sees and thinks I'd like). And really I think the parent buying it is a factor, but that certainly doesn't make up for the majority of female sales.


SWTerra : Well it doesn't really matter, but it is nice to see facts that refute the stereotype that "games are for boys" (I actually had a female friend say those exact words to me recently). And while what you and Sword (and myself) said about how the numbers don't show us a perfect picture of who is most likely to buy a console for themselves, they do show us that women enjoy gaming as much as men do, and that they are an active part of the game community.

And price is certainly an issue, hence the fact that people making 75k or more each year are shown as being more likely to own a console than people making less than 30k a year. Still low income is an issue that strikes men and women both, so that shouldn't add to skewing the numbers except for the younger crowd.

However I certainly agree with your other points. In fact I'm ashamed to admit it, but I recently found myself feeling embarrassed because I was looking around the Nintendo section of my local game shop and I know the people (men and women) that work there are hardcore gamers like myself. I didn't stay there long before moving back to the PS4 and PS Vita sections. I honestly was surprised at my own self for that because I never let popular opinion dictate my decisions. Also I don't consider Nintendo as being for casuals, "noobs" (people who even use that word being serious annoy me), or kids, so that reaction was very much out of character for me. If I can be affected like that, how many others can be as well?

But really the whole point behind me posting this article was to point out that women are gamers just as much as men are, despite the fact that developers seem to try to push toward men. Of course I guess if games started pushing toward women I wouldn't stop playing just because of that. I would adjust and enjoy what I could still. And I figure that's exactly what women gamers are doing.

It's never really surprised me that 35 year old Men and younger 40 year old women have game consoles and are the most prevalent people in this polls/"studies"

There's a few factors for this.

1. These studies are usually done by older people. Don't know too many kids doing research studies like this for fun.

2. People that age are the ones most likely to have the extra money to buy a 3-400$ console.

3. That's the age of people that have grown up with video games for the past 30 years and it's ingrained as a big part of their life. They probably have less of a social life than your average 20 year old and use their free time to play games with their loved ones.

4. Guys ask for game consoles a lot for presents, from their parents or wives/girlfriends and the nice ones purchase it for them and often play it with them when they get it.

Heck my girlfriend plays games just as much, if not more than I do.

Eirinn : Good point on the price; I must have overlooked that when I skimmed over. I'll admit, I didn't read completely through, mostly due to currently doing tons of busy work, both scholastically and personally, and being sick as all hell...

Also, my point isn't that it discourages all gamers; if that were the case, then there would be very, VERY few Nintendo gamers in the States. But as you said, even if it slightly affects your viewpoints, it can lean you towards the "hardcore," overly masculine games subconsciously, regardless of whether you're conscious of trying to not let it get to you or not.

Sword legion :

I like this comment. I live on my own but, it's true. When I lived with my mom although she did not game at all (not technology savvy) she always kept an eye out for games everywhere she went Wal-Mart, Yard Sales, and thrift stores. She bought computers, and many game consoles.
Now as an adult, she still buys me games for holidays but, I have purchased my own consoles also when I see there's a special or bundle going on. 

This doesn't surprise me either. My mum got me into Sonic the hedgehog (she was really good at that game). She never really looked around game shops to buy me stuff. That is more so what my dad does but it still I am not surprised as I do see a lot of mothers buying consoles for their kids.

A lot of parents buy a console for the kids to shut them up,initially. Mom might have to buy it for little Jimmy,but little Jimmy is the owner and user. Now it is perfectly okay for girls to game,back in the early days,not so much. And game companies did not help with crappy 'girl themed' games like Barbie or a dancing game.

Girls have been welcomed,and maybe a bit too much,by male gamers. But girls are patient and willing to wait for a good shot. The Russian Army always welcomed females to be snipers. It should not be too surprising that more and more girls do game and admit it proudly. Things do change and a lot of girls are as good as if not better than the guys.

NEW STUDY JUST IN: MEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO BUY RINGS THAN WOMEN. Hahahaha I think the same thing applies here. When you're a kid your parents are more than likely to buy you games. I dunno.