“No big boobs? I’m out”. En kvalitativ studie av mäns och kvinnors bemötande på streamingplattformen Twitch.tv

Abstract

The internet has expanded greatly, revolutionising almost every aspect of communication and creating so far unseen interactions and social networks. It’s a space where people can connect, get access to otherwise unseen knowledge and explore new hobbies with others. These networks can also expose the dark side of human nature, with hate, sexism, racism all being reported. In this study, we focus on the interaction between men and women on the streaming platform Twitch.tv, a young and growing platform, and very popular in the gaming sector, but also a place for arts. We attempt to determine the extent to which sexism or other gender-based differences in behaviour can be seen. In a case study of observation of 24 streams of mostly gaming content, from both male and female streamers, we look at communication between the streamer and the audience, and isolate language indicative of sexist behaviour. From this, we attempt to determine patterns. We also performed four interviews, with both viewers and streamers to understand the motivation behind sexist behaviour. Our results suggest a difference in the experiences of men and women on Twitch, which mirrors offline societal trends but with more extreme behaviour. We found not only a difference in the language but also a difference in reactions. We conclude that sexism plays a significant part in the interaction on the platform Twitch, affecting both sexes differently.