Representations of Africans in Popular Video Games in the U.S

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tdladmin,+7285-30820-3-LE-Bayeck.pdf (3.14 MB)

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https://jvwr-ojs-utexas.tdl.org/jvwr/index.php/jvwr/article/view/7285

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https://doi.org/10.4101/jvwr.v11i2.7285
 http://hdl.handle.net/11603/28243

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UMBC Education Department
UMBC Faculty Collection

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Author/Creator ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6698-2949

Date

2018-07-30

Type of Work

journal articles
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Citation of Original Publication

Bayeck, R.Y., Tutaleni I. Asino & Patricia A. Young. "Representations of Africans in popular video games in the U.S." Journal of Virtual Worlds Research 11, no. 2 (30 July 2018): 1-12. https://journals.tdl.org/jvwr/index.php/jvwr/article/view/7285.

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Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported (CC BY-ND 3.0)

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Abstract

Studies investigating the representation of Africans and other ethnicities are scarce in video game literature. Using a content analysis approach, this paper examines Africans’ representation in ten of the most popular games of 2014 in the United States based on industry market research reports. The findings show that Africans are underrepresented in video games explored in this study. The study also reveals that African characters in these games did not play leading roles in the storyline. Results are discussed as they pertain to Africans’ representation in video games, media effect, and media literature. This exploratory study broadens the discussion on representation in video games to other ethnicities and shows the need for studies on representation in contemporary video games that include understudied ethnicities.