Dietz, Tracy L. (1998) “An Examination of Violence and Gender Role Portrayal in Video Games: Implications for Gender Socialization and Aggressive Behavior.”

This article “An Examination of Violence and Gender Role Portrayal in Video Games: Implications for Gender Socialization and Aggressive Behavior.” discusses the problem of gender portrayal and violence’s presence in video games. The article studies various video games and collects percentages of women versus men avatars and percent of violence contained in the game. This study concluded that women are less represented than men in video games and that violence in video games is seen to be directed at women in the game. 
Dietz studied a sample of 33 video games from Nintendo and Sega Genesis to study gender roles in these games as well as violent content amounts. This study also analyzed behavior outcomes from playing video games and how gender and violence affected them. Deitz talks a lot about gender roles and how even before birth, gender roles are assigned, this includes the stereotype that boys play video games and girls do not. Dietz also studied how violent video games affect real life and if there is a correlation between playing violent video games and playing out violent tendencies. 

Dietz concluded that women are given far less representation in video games than men. He also concluded that video games that contain violence can often aim it at the female roles. This not only creates a false reality, but degrades women and does not empower them or encourage them to play these games. 

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