“Pro Gamers” & Cyberbullying: Workplace bullying & sexual harassment in professional video gaming

Abstract

As Esports grows rapidly, it is imperative to understand cyberbullying in the professional video game playing context, including those who are most vulnerable to cyberbullying. It is predicted that professional women players would experience more cyberbullying and consequently have adverse effects on their mental health. Participants (N = 145) were collected from around the world (n = 14 countries) and completed a 10-minute online survey. Path analysis demonstrated that being a woman is a significant predictor of a particular type of cyberbullying (sexual harassment) which in turn also predicts mental health outcomes. Further, the degree to which a player treats gaming as a job (i.e., level of gaming professionalism) is a significant predictor of overall cyberbullying, and that cyberbullying subsequently predicts mental health outcomes. This study suggests the virtual workplace for professional players is unsafe, and further research is required to better understand how to protect these vulnerable workers from harm.