Grad School paper on D&D! Survey on demographics + Discussion - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Grad School paper on D&D! Survey on demographics + Discussion

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
The_Crimson_Dawn
Oct 08, 2011 20:04:43 Hello! This is the future Mrs. CrimsonDawn speaking, by the way. I also play D&D and I am currently in the Library Science masters program at Kent State. For my Access to Information class I'm doing a paper on a particular user group (in my case D&D players) and to comment on their information needs, seeking procedures, etc. I would like to know some general demographics of this forum. I'm looking to know particularly if anyone doesn't identify with the general stereotype of a D&D player (which I usually think of as a white, young, educated, man that thinks of himself as a "geek"). Part of my paper will be commenting about my own link to the group (especially about my gender) but I want to know others' input too. If you feel comfortable please reply with your age (doesn't have to be exact, under/over 18 and under/over 30 is ok), education level, and any characteristics you think would be worthy of discussion. Feel free to private message me if you want communication to be confidential. Let me know if there are any other topics related to information gathering and D&D that you think are appropriate, I would love to discuss them!
G (future Mrs.CrimsonDawn)
#2
pluisjen
Oct 09, 2011 4:49:56 I fit snugly in the stereotype ^^

Looking over my groups, most of the guys fit the stereotypes and the girls don't (because they're not guys, but that's just about it)
#3
bone_naga
Oct 10, 2011 9:32:38 I actually had a psych eval recently where the doc commented on how unusual I was. Apparently I didn't fit neatly into the categories of people he usually dealt with. Part of my life is very "geeky" stuff, like reading books, D&D, painting miniatures, clay modeling, etc. The other part is stuff that doesn't fit at all into that stereotype, like weight lifting, triathlons, running, camping/fishing/outdoor recreation, working in the military, working with explosives, going to the gun range, etc. I can socialize well with others (as can most of my gamer friends), and a lot of people are surprised that I play D&D. Then again, I expect that a lot of people that seem to fit the stereotypes probably break it in some way or another. Humans are too variable and diverse not to do so.

As for whether or not I identify with the geek stereotype, *shrug*. I don't really give much thought to it. I don't really mentally put myself in that category, but I did always identify myself as being weird or at least different from most people, and my family seems to feel the same.

I am white, male, somewhat educated (associates, working on my bachelors), under 30, married (D&D is a family game at my house). You didn't mention much else so I don't know what's useful for your demographic. 3 out of my 4 regular players are women and two of them aren't white so that probably breaks your stereotypes a bit, although overall most of the gamers I played with over the years have been white males.
#4
bone_naga
Oct 10, 2011 9:43:03
I thought DnD was fairly popular within the military. How could he be surprised?

It's hit and miss. In some places it's fairly common, and especially overseas when people are looking for simple ways to pass their off time, you can suck in people that wouldn't otherwise be interested. However, the military isn't just one giant entity, it has a lot of smaller subcultures. Combat arms units have completely different mentalities than support unit and generally composed of different personalities, and even within those groups, you'll find huge differences between an SF team and an infantry squad, or an EOD company and a maintenance company. The type of people he usually evaluated were more of the macho type that didn't usually get into stuff like D&D, or if they had probably didn't admit to it.

EDIT: I didn't bother to ask him at the time so I could be wrong, but part of the reason he was surprised may have been that I didn't fit neatly into any of those particular groups. He may have expected someone that was in a finance company to be a D&D geek over someone with my particular job.
#5
Escef
Oct 10, 2011 10:44:37
EDIT: I didn't bother to ask him at the time so I could be wrong, but part of the reason he was surprised may have been that I didn't fit neatly into any of those particular groups. He may have expected someone that was in a finance company to be a D&D geek over someone with my particular job.

I can vouch from personal experience that the 35 series is crawling with gamers.

As for myself, mid-30s, white male, raised working class, done a lot of blue collar and clerical work, did a four year stint in the Army doing an intel job, currently looking for work (is it a bad thing when Kandahar sounds better than Georgia?), high school grad, no college, used to lift weights (haven't in a long while, I should get back into it) but never really been the athletic type, big geek, depending on situation my personality can be anywhere from subdued to boisterous.
#6
bone_naga
Oct 10, 2011 10:47:53
(is it a bad thing when Kandahar sounds better than Georgia?)

Not at all. If I didn't have a family, I'd be permanently overseas, I'd just keep extending my tour and TCSing from one unit to another.
#7
homicidal_squirrel
Oct 10, 2011 10:51:05
Hello! This is the future Mrs. CrimsonDawn speaking, by the way. I also play D&D and I am currently in the Library Science masters program at Kent State. For my Access to Information class I'm doing a paper on a particular user group (in my case D&D players) and to comment on their information needs, seeking procedures, etc. I would like to know some general demographics of this forum. I'm looking to know particularly if anyone doesn't identify with the general stereotype of a D&D player (which I usually think of as a white, young, educated, man that thinks of himself as a "geek"). Part of my paper will be commenting about my own link to the group (especially about my gender) but I want to know others' input too. If you feel comfortable please reply with your age (doesn't have to be exact, under/over 18 and under/over 30 is ok), education level, and any characteristics you think would be worthy of discussion. Feel free to private message me if you want communication to be confidential. Let me know if there are any other topics related to information gathering and D&D that you think are appropriate, I would love to discuss them!
G (future Mrs.CrimsonDawn)

You may want to set up some type of survey.
#8
zombie_babies
Oct 10, 2011 16:13:34
Hello! This is the future Mrs. CrimsonDawn speaking, by the way. I also play D&D and I am currently in the Library Science masters program at Kent State. For my Access to Information class I'm doing a paper on a particular user group (in my case D&D players) and to comment on their information needs, seeking procedures, etc. I would like to know some general demographics of this forum. I'm looking to know particularly if anyone doesn't identify with the general stereotype of a D&D player (which I usually think of as a white, young, educated, man that thinks of himself as a "geek"). Part of my paper will be commenting about my own link to the group (especially about my gender) but I want to know others' input too. If you feel comfortable please reply with your age (doesn't have to be exact, under/over 18 and under/over 30 is ok), education level, and any characteristics you think would be worthy of discussion. Feel free to private message me if you want communication to be confidential. Let me know if there are any other topics related to information gathering and D&D that you think are appropriate, I would love to discuss them!
G (future Mrs.CrimsonDawn)

I'd like to help a fellow Ohioan - even if they're attending 'Kent read, kent write' Kent state but I don't play D&D anymore. Sorry. And I have a librarian friend, too, so I feel even wor ... ok, I don't feel bad at all. But you get the idea. Was there an idea? Aw hell, I dunno ...
#9
EscherEnigma
Oct 10, 2011 21:12:14 Library Science? Interesting choice. What was your bachelors, if you don't mind me asking? After getting my CS degree going for a Masters in Library Science was one of the things I was considering (having worked in a library for five or six years at that point).

Anyway...

Um, let's see... male, 26, caucasian, identifies as "geek", works on a military base trying to make more efficient ways of killing bad guys. Enjoy the out-doors so long as I don't have to sleep there (rock climbing, day-hiking trips, that sort of thing) and putting on leather armor and beating the snot out of another guy (SCA). Been playing RPGs since high school, computer rpgs since Baldur's Gate and Planescape.

As far as social stuff... I get along well with most people, but don't really pull off that "bonding" thing, just staying at amiable and friendly. Been in the same relationship for over five years now with a man I met at our college's gaming club (we bonded over Cyberpunk 2025 and D&D).

You looking for case studies or just raw demographics?
#10
The_Crimson_Dawn
Oct 10, 2011 21:30:05 Thanks so much for the info so far guys!

EscherEnigma: My bachelors is a BS in Education. I did an offshoot major of the College of Education that doesn't offer licensure but is customizable (so I made it into a kind of pre-Library Science degree). There are a lot of different majors present at SLIS, and I'm sure CS would not be out of place. I do have to take an IT class tailored for information professionals (it's a requirement) and we are expected to be pretty tech-savvy.

This paper profiles a particular group of information users. One section should discuss demographics, hence this post. The rest is a report on the process of seeking information, forming queries, information access theory, etc. within the context of the user group. It's actually quite fascinating to think about DnD in this way; there's a complex system of info gathering and processing going on at the table. In the demographics section I wanted to discuss the stereotype associated with gaming and explain that we're not all antisocial geeks. Thanks for talking about playing in the military, bone_naga. That'll be a good example of the commonality of DnD.

#11
EscherEnigma
Oct 10, 2011 22:41:30 Makes sense. From my years as a library grunt (and later a library grunt-wrangler) I know that the biggest hurdle at my library was just helping people find resources. With so much resources going electronic these days you really need to work those link farms to find stuff, and teaching people that stuff is a pain.
#12
oxybe
Oct 11, 2011 13:41:31 starting today i'm 26, male, i've been working tech support for same company for the past 4 years & for education i have an associate's degree in network administration.

in what spare time i do have (i leave for work at around 9am and get home at around 8-9pm) i...
-surf the internet, usually for TV shows of interest, forums or pictures of cats with captions

-i play videogames ranging from the more modern PS3/PC ones to my old SNES. currently waiting for Arkham City, Saint's Row 3 and the final release of Minecraft.

-i try to sneak in an evening of friday night magic when possible, especially since the latest set was made for me. Zombie, Werewolves, Ghosts and Vampires... it's the Castlevania set! mono-black zombies, represent!

-i watch some TV, but it's usually "whatever's on Discovery, Space or Teletoon" while i'm eating food since Dr.Who is done until the christmas episode

-i'll go on the occasional walk if it's nice outside. nothing more to say on this really, just a nice walk.

-on mondays me and a few buddies alternate trying out RPG systems and simply hanging out: watching movies, drinking, playing board games... just chilling.

-i'm a "loner" by nature if you will... i just don't like crowds... it's generally too stuffy and loud for my tastes.

i would say i generally fit in the "Geek" culture though i have the odd discrepancies in my nerd cred that cause doubletakes when asked about.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 The_Crimson_Dawn Oct 08, 2011 20:04:43	Hello! This is the future Mrs. CrimsonDawn speaking, by the way. I also play D&D and I am currently in the Library Science masters program at Kent State. For my Access to Information class I'm doing a paper on a particular user group (in my case D&D players) and to comment on their information needs, seeking procedures, etc. I would like to know some general demographics of this forum. I'm looking to know particularly if anyone doesn't identify with the general stereotype of a D&D player (which I usually think of as a white, young, educated, man that thinks of himself as a "geek"). Part of my paper will be commenting about my own link to the group (especially about my gender) but I want to know others' input too. If you feel comfortable please reply with your age (doesn't have to be exact, under/over 18 and under/over 30 is ok), education level, and any characteristics you think would be worthy of discussion. Feel free to private message me if you want communication to be confidential. Let me know if there are any other topics related to information gathering and D&D that you think are appropriate, I would love to discuss them! G (future Mrs.CrimsonDawn)
#2 pluisjen Oct 09, 2011 4:49:56	I fit snugly in the stereotype ^^ Looking over my groups, most of the guys fit the stereotypes and the girls don't (because they're not guys, but that's just about it)
#3 bone_naga Oct 10, 2011 9:32:38	I actually had a psych eval recently where the doc commented on how unusual I was. Apparently I didn't fit neatly into the categories of people he usually dealt with. Part of my life is very "geeky" stuff, like reading books, D&D, painting miniatures, clay modeling, etc. The other part is stuff that doesn't fit at all into that stereotype, like weight lifting, triathlons, running, camping/fishing/outdoor recreation, working in the military, working with explosives, going to the gun range, etc. I can socialize well with others (as can most of my gamer friends), and a lot of people are surprised that I play D&D. Then again, I expect that a lot of people that seem to fit the stereotypes probably break it in some way or another. Humans are too variable and diverse not to do so. As for whether or not I identify with the geek stereotype, shrug. I don't really give much thought to it. I don't really mentally put myself in that category, but I did always identify myself as being weird or at least different from most people, and my family seems to feel the same. I am white, male, somewhat educated (associates, working on my bachelors), under 30, married (D&D is a family game at my house). You didn't mention much else so I don't know what's useful for your demographic. 3 out of my 4 regular players are women and two of them aren't white so that probably breaks your stereotypes a bit, although overall most of the gamers I played with over the years have been white males.
#4 bone_naga Oct 10, 2011 9:43:03	I thought DnD was fairly popular within the military. How could he be surprised? It's hit and miss. In some places it's fairly common, and especially overseas when people are looking for simple ways to pass their off time, you can suck in people that wouldn't otherwise be interested. However, the military isn't just one giant entity, it has a lot of smaller subcultures. Combat arms units have completely different mentalities than support unit and generally composed of different personalities, and even within those groups, you'll find huge differences between an SF team and an infantry squad, or an EOD company and a maintenance company. The type of people he usually evaluated were more of the macho type that didn't usually get into stuff like D&D, or if they had probably didn't admit to it. EDIT: I didn't bother to ask him at the time so I could be wrong, but part of the reason he was surprised may have been that I didn't fit neatly into any of those particular groups. He may have expected someone that was in a finance company to be a D&D geek over someone with my particular job.
#5 Escef Oct 10, 2011 10:44:37	EDIT: I didn't bother to ask him at the time so I could be wrong, but part of the reason he was surprised may have been that I didn't fit neatly into any of those particular groups. He may have expected someone that was in a finance company to be a D&D geek over someone with my particular job. I can vouch from personal experience that the 35 series is crawling with gamers. As for myself, mid-30s, white male, raised working class, done a lot of blue collar and clerical work, did a four year stint in the Army doing an intel job, currently looking for work (is it a bad thing when Kandahar sounds better than Georgia?), high school grad, no college, used to lift weights (haven't in a long while, I should get back into it) but never really been the athletic type, big geek, depending on situation my personality can be anywhere from subdued to boisterous.
#6 bone_naga Oct 10, 2011 10:47:53	(is it a bad thing when Kandahar sounds better than Georgia?) Not at all. If I didn't have a family, I'd be permanently overseas, I'd just keep extending my tour and TCSing from one unit to another.
#7 homicidal_squirrel Oct 10, 2011 10:51:05	Hello! This is the future Mrs. CrimsonDawn speaking, by the way. I also play D&D and I am currently in the Library Science masters program at Kent State. For my Access to Information class I'm doing a paper on a particular user group (in my case D&D players) and to comment on their information needs, seeking procedures, etc. I would like to know some general demographics of this forum. I'm looking to know particularly if anyone doesn't identify with the general stereotype of a D&D player (which I usually think of as a white, young, educated, man that thinks of himself as a "geek"). Part of my paper will be commenting about my own link to the group (especially about my gender) but I want to know others' input too. If you feel comfortable please reply with your age (doesn't have to be exact, under/over 18 and under/over 30 is ok), education level, and any characteristics you think would be worthy of discussion. Feel free to private message me if you want communication to be confidential. Let me know if there are any other topics related to information gathering and D&D that you think are appropriate, I would love to discuss them! G (future Mrs.CrimsonDawn) You may want to set up some type of survey.
#8 zombie_babies Oct 10, 2011 16:13:34	Hello! This is the future Mrs. CrimsonDawn speaking, by the way. I also play D&D and I am currently in the Library Science masters program at Kent State. For my Access to Information class I'm doing a paper on a particular user group (in my case D&D players) and to comment on their information needs, seeking procedures, etc. I would like to know some general demographics of this forum. I'm looking to know particularly if anyone doesn't identify with the general stereotype of a D&D player (which I usually think of as a white, young, educated, man that thinks of himself as a "geek"). Part of my paper will be commenting about my own link to the group (especially about my gender) but I want to know others' input too. If you feel comfortable please reply with your age (doesn't have to be exact, under/over 18 and under/over 30 is ok), education level, and any characteristics you think would be worthy of discussion. Feel free to private message me if you want communication to be confidential. Let me know if there are any other topics related to information gathering and D&D that you think are appropriate, I would love to discuss them! G (future Mrs.CrimsonDawn) I'd like to help a fellow Ohioan - even if they're attending 'Kent read, kent write' Kent state but I don't play D&D anymore. Sorry. And I have a librarian friend, too, so I feel even wor ... ok, I don't feel bad at all. But you get the idea. Was there an idea? Aw hell, I dunno ...
#9 EscherEnigma Oct 10, 2011 21:12:14	Library Science? Interesting choice. What was your bachelors, if you don't mind me asking? After getting my CS degree going for a Masters in Library Science was one of the things I was considering (having worked in a library for five or six years at that point). Anyway... Um, let's see... male, 26, caucasian, identifies as "geek", works on a military base trying to make more efficient ways of killing bad guys. Enjoy the out-doors so long as I don't have to sleep there (rock climbing, day-hiking trips, that sort of thing) and putting on leather armor and beating the snot out of another guy (SCA). Been playing RPGs since high school, computer rpgs since Baldur's Gate and Planescape. As far as social stuff... I get along well with most people, but don't really pull off that "bonding" thing, just staying at amiable and friendly. Been in the same relationship for over five years now with a man I met at our college's gaming club (we bonded over Cyberpunk 2025 and D&D). You looking for case studies or just raw demographics?
#10 The_Crimson_Dawn Oct 10, 2011 21:30:05	Thanks so much for the info so far guys! EscherEnigma: My bachelors is a BS in Education. I did an offshoot major of the College of Education that doesn't offer licensure but is customizable (so I made it into a kind of pre-Library Science degree). There are a lot of different majors present at SLIS, and I'm sure CS would not be out of place. I do have to take an IT class tailored for information professionals (it's a requirement) and we are expected to be pretty tech-savvy. This paper profiles a particular group of information users. One section should discuss demographics, hence this post. The rest is a report on the process of seeking information, forming queries, information access theory, etc. within the context of the user group. It's actually quite fascinating to think about DnD in this way; there's a complex system of info gathering and processing going on at the table. In the demographics section I wanted to discuss the stereotype associated with gaming and explain that we're not all antisocial geeks. Thanks for talking about playing in the military, bone_naga. That'll be a good example of the commonality of DnD.
#11 EscherEnigma Oct 10, 2011 22:41:30	Makes sense. From my years as a library grunt (and later a library grunt-wrangler) I know that the biggest hurdle at my library was just helping people find resources. With so much resources going electronic these days you really need to work those link farms to find stuff, and teaching people that stuff is a pain.
#12 oxybe Oct 11, 2011 13:41:31	starting today i'm 26, male, i've been working tech support for same company for the past 4 years & for education i have an associate's degree in network administration. in what spare time i do have (i leave for work at around 9am and get home at around 8-9pm) i... -surf the internet, usually for TV shows of interest, forums or pictures of cats with captions -i play videogames ranging from the more modern PS3/PC ones to my old SNES. currently waiting for Arkham City, Saint's Row 3 and the final release of Minecraft. -i try to sneak in an evening of friday night magic when possible, especially since the latest set was made for me. Zombie, Werewolves, Ghosts and Vampires... it's the Castlevania set! mono-black zombies, represent! -i watch some TV, but it's usually "whatever's on Discovery, Space or Teletoon" while i'm eating food since Dr.Who is done until the christmas episode -i'll go on the occasional walk if it's nice outside. nothing more to say on this really, just a nice walk. -on mondays me and a few buddies alternate trying out RPG systems and simply hanging out: watching movies, drinking, playing board games... just chilling. -i'm a "loner" by nature if you will... i just don't like crowds... it's generally too stuffy and loud for my tastes. i would say i generally fit in the "Geek" culture though i have the odd discrepancies in my nerd cred that cause doubletakes when asked about.