Gaming and esports communities possess cultural barriers that exclude potential participants, limiting their access to social, cultural, and economic opportunities. In the United States, for instance, varsity esports players are increasingly supported by scholarships and tournament prizes, but persistent challenges make these benefits accessible to only a limited portion of the student body. Using a grounded theory analysis of 31 in-depth interviews with collegiate esports players, administrators, and student workers, this study examines perceived barriers and their (in)visibility to different participants. We find that gender and race are readily acknowledged, while other identities (age, physical ability, etc.) are overlooked. Moreover, visibility did not necessarily correlate with meaningful strategies for inclusion. While collegiate esports could be a welcoming and equitable environment, these findings suggest it will not be so until all hurdles are (1) made visible and (2) addressed relative to a university’s own student body composition.

中文翻译：

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内/可见障碍：美国大学电子竞技参与者认为参与和参与的障碍


游戏和电子竞技社区存在文化障碍，排除了潜在的参与者，限制了他们获得社会、文化和经济机会。例如，在美国，大学电子竞技运动员越来越多地获得奖学金和锦标赛奖金的支持，但持续的挑战使得只有有限一部分学生能够获得这些好处。本研究通过对大学电子竞技运动员、管理人员和学生工作者的 31 次深度访谈进行扎根理论分析，探讨了感知到的障碍及其对不同参与者的可见性。我们发现性别和种族很容易被承认，而其他身份（年龄、身体能力等）却被忽视。此外，可见性并不一定与有意义的包容性策略相关。虽然大学电子竞技可能是一个受欢迎和公平的环境，但这些研究结果表明，除非所有障碍（1）变得可见并且（2）相对于大学自己的学生群体组成得到解决，否则情况不会如此。