A131: Analyzing the Perception of Gender Differences Toward Esports AmongAmerican College Students

<bold>Background/Purpose:</bold> Electronic sports (Esports) have continued to grow in popularity and commercial significance. Understanding the evolving dynamics of gender within this domain is critical. The self-perception model was used as the framework for designing an individual-level Esports perception for both genders (male and female), to increase Esports participation and perceptive function in college students living in east coast of the US. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the perception of gender differences in Esports among American colleges. <bold>Methods/Design:</bold> 600 eligible college students participated in this study from North American higher education institutions. The research instrument of Perception of Esports (PES) survey was used for validity and reliability measurement (Chen, et al., 2020). The measurement questions were component element by five perception factors (Attraction, Economic, Recognition, Socialization, Technicity). The college students filled out the survey and investigators collected the survey from postsecondary education institutions. The respondents were divided into a female group (<italic>n</italic> = 318) and a male group (<italic>n</italic> = 282). Data analyses included descriptive statistics, ANCOVAs test with repeated measures controlling for gender, reliability, and using a Post hoc Scheffé test. <bold>Results:</bold> ANCOVAs with repeated measures controlling for gender, indicated significant differences in the factors of Attraction (<italic>F</italic> = 30.55, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), Economic (<italic>F</italic> = 37.37, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), Recognition (<italic>F</italic> = 37.04, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), Socialization (<italic>F</italic> = 27.57, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), and Technique (<italic>F</italic> = 22.17, <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001). In terms of Esports college student’s perceptions with gender differences, Cronbach’s Alpha was 0.904. Post hoc Scheffé tests revealed that the female group test scored significantly lower than the male group on the factor of recognition (<italic>M</italic> = 4.08 vs. <italic>M</italic> = 4.83). The male group scored considerably higher than the female group on all five perception factors (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.05, <italic>M</italic> = 4.81 vs. <italic>M</italic> = 4.25). <bold>Discussion/Conclusion:</bold> The study indicated that male Esports college students perceived higher levels of Attraction, Economic, Recognition, Socialization, and Technicity in Esports compared to female college students. This could be because male college students spent more time on Esports or video game activities than their female counterparts. While Esports is predominantly perceived as a male-oriented field, female college students are increasingly feeling empowered by opportunities within Esports and are also confronting persistent stereotypes. Therefore, further research is necessary to explore strategies for fostering inclusivity in Esports environments.