Women experience guilt, shame and exclusion in gaming culture, study finds

A new study has revealed how many women in the UK experience guilt and shame around playing video games, and how this is linked to feeling excluded from gaming culture.

The research, co-led by Dr Seán Roberts, Lecturer in Communication, surveyed 1,000 women across the UK who play mobile games – the most popular way for women to engage with gaming. The project was a collaboration with Dr Steph Rennick (University of Stirling) and Swedish gaming studio Undone Games.

Although women now make up nearly half of all gamers – with 51% of women gaming compared to 53% of men – they remain underrepresented in many genres and in how games are designed and discussed.

The survey uncovered a tension between enjoyment and belonging. While 41% of women said playing games was one of the things they most look forward to each day, almost 60% felt they did not play enough to call themselves a gamer. More than 30% said they would be embarrassed to use that label.

Dr Rennick said: “The study shows many women feel excluded from video game culture, with significant numbers of women feeling guilty about playing video games and worrying about what others think of them taking time to play games.

“Interestingly, feeling guilty or keeping secrets about gaming did not correlate with how much time women spent playing games. We expected a significant proportion of women to report feelings of guilt around playing video games and taking leisure time more generally. But while we thought feelings of guilt or shame would have a negative impact on the amount of time women spent playing games, we didn’t find such a connection. Those who feel guilty or keep secrets don’t play less, but they feel worse.”

Patterns emerged across age groups, with women aged 16–24 three times more likely to strongly agree that they feel guilty about gaming than those aged 55 and older.

One key issue was whether women felt they fit the identity of a gamer. Women were more likely to feel guilty if they believed gaming was mainly a male pastime or if they said they would be embarrassed to call themselves a gamer.

Dr Roberts said: “When I ask people if they play video games, women often say no. But if you ask about playing games on a mobile, many of them will suddenly say yes. It’s like they have an idea of what a real gamer is in their heads, and they feel like they don’t meet that ideal.”

The research also showed a link between secrecy and social pressure. Around 16% of women reported hiding their gaming from family and friends due to fear of judgement. Those experiencing anxiety or low mood on social media were twice as likely to keep gaming a secret.

For some women, expressing pride in their gaming achievements increased secrecy, while those motivated by challenge were less likely to hide their gaming.

Dr Roberts added: “Women tend to spend less time playing if they feel they don’t fit into gaming culture – for example if they believe that gaming is a male pastime, or that they don't play enough games to be a gamer, are embarrassed to call themselves a gamer, or think video games are too violent. In contrast, women spend more time playing if they are proud of their gaming achievements.

“This suggests that guilt and shame are just symptoms. While these are clearly negatively impacting women gamers, they may not be the root of the problem. Instead, removing barriers to play for women may require deeper changes such as reducing leisure inequality between men and women.”

The study, Not Gamers, Just Women Who Play Video Games: A Survey of Women’s Attitudes to Mobile Games in the UK, is published in the journal Sex Roles.