{"title":"Prevalence and Characteristics of Female and Male Esports Players among Norwegian Youth: A General Population Study.","authors":"Stian Overå, Anders Bakken, Christer Hyggen","doi":"10.3390/ijerph21091136","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Electronic sports (esports) have evolved into a major cultural phenomenon in the 21st century, mirroring traditional sports with organized, competitive play. This study investigates the prevalence of esports participation and characteristics of esports players among Norwegian adolescents. Using data from the Ungdata survey, a comprehensive web-based survey of Norwegian adolescents that includes questions on demographics, health, physical activity, social relations, and leisure activities such as gaming and esports, we analyzed responses from 70,695 students aged 16-18 years collected during 2021-2023. We conclude that about one out of twenty in the age group of 16-18 years actively engage in esports. The figure conceals significant gender differences: only 0.7% of girls, compared to 8.8% of boys, actively participate in esports. While female esports players differ noticeably from non-players on almost all indicators included in our analyses, the picture among boys reflects more similarities between esports players and other boys, than differences. Among the esports players, females almost consistently reported more negative experiences than males, including less physical socialization, lower self-rated health, higher rates of loneliness and sleeping problems, and a greater difficulty fitting in at school. Despite these negative aspects, esports players maintain close friendships similar to their non-playing peers.</p>","PeriodicalId":49056,"journal":{"name":"International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0000,"publicationDate":"2024-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11431502/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health","FirstCategoryId":"103","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph21091136","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"综合性期刊","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"","JCRName":"","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Electronic sports (esports) have evolved into a major cultural phenomenon in the 21st century, mirroring traditional sports with organized, competitive play. This study investigates the prevalence of esports participation and characteristics of esports players among Norwegian adolescents. Using data from the Ungdata survey, a comprehensive web-based survey of Norwegian adolescents that includes questions on demographics, health, physical activity, social relations, and leisure activities such as gaming and esports, we analyzed responses from 70,695 students aged 16-18 years collected during 2021-2023. We conclude that about one out of twenty in the age group of 16-18 years actively engage in esports. The figure conceals significant gender differences: only 0.7% of girls, compared to 8.8% of boys, actively participate in esports. While female esports players differ noticeably from non-players on almost all indicators included in our analyses, the picture among boys reflects more similarities between esports players and other boys, than differences. Among the esports players, females almost consistently reported more negative experiences than males, including less physical socialization, lower self-rated health, higher rates of loneliness and sleeping problems, and a greater difficulty fitting in at school. Despite these negative aspects, esports players maintain close friendships similar to their non-playing peers.
期刊介绍:
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) (ISSN 1660-4601) is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that publishes original articles, critical reviews, research notes, and short communications in the interdisciplinary area of environmental health sciences and public health. It links several scientific disciplines including biology, biochemistry, biotechnology, cellular and molecular biology, chemistry, computer science, ecology, engineering, epidemiology, genetics, immunology, microbiology, oncology, pathology, pharmacology, and toxicology, in an integrated fashion, to address critical issues related to environmental quality and public health. Therefore, IJERPH focuses on the publication of scientific and technical information on the impacts of natural phenomena and anthropogenic factors on the quality of our environment, the interrelationships between environmental health and the quality of life, as well as the socio-cultural, political, economic, and legal considerations related to environmental stewardship and public health.
The 2018 IJERPH Outstanding Reviewer Award has been launched! This award acknowledge those who have generously dedicated their time to review manuscripts submitted to IJERPH. See full details at http://www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph/awards.