The habitus of misogyny: Bourdieu and the institutionalization of sexist abuse in the video games industry

Abstract

Sexism in video games is widespread, but most studies focus on sexism in representation and/or in play. Few studies examine sexism as a practice of production. The 2021 lawsuit by California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) against Activision Blizzard for pervasive sexual harassment and abuse highlighted several misogynist practices at one of the largest video game companies in the world. This study uses a directed qualitative analysis of the DFEH lawsuit to understand the practice of misogyny and sexism in the video game industry, using Activision Blizzard as an exemplar. Informed by Pierre Bourdieu’s theories about cultural fields of production, it argues that sexism is a core value, a habitus, of the industry, and suggests areas for further research.