How do women use gaming in everyday life? And how does it affect their wellbeing?

Abstract

This master thesis studies women’s use of video gaming and how this affects their wellbeing in everyday life. The 17 women aged 25-35 years old were studied using online diaries which they wrote in every time they played video games to get the immediate reactions and reflection consisting of why they chose to spend time playing, how it made them feel and what motivated them. Through analyzing the contents of the diaries in a thematic analysis I find that that video games are very important to the women in regards of relaxation, socializing and achievements. However, the findings also show that no matter how important gaming is for the participants, they justify their use, and it will not be prioritized unless other responsibilities are tended to first. They tend to see gaming as a reward they must earn to be able to enjoy it. This thesis is using Schrøder’s (2015) perceived worthwhileness theory in order to analyze how and which dimensions are most prevalent in the participants decision making when it comes to their time in everyday life.