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Policies of Misconduct: A Content Analysis of Codes of Conduct for Online Multiplayer Games

Authors:

Thomas D. Grace,

Katie SalenAuthors Info & Claims

Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, Volume 6, Issue CHI PLAY

Article No.: 250, Pages 1 - 23

https://doi.org/10.1145/3549513

Published: 31 October 2022 Publication History

Abstract

In this paper we searched the websites of 60 popular online multiplayer games to locate their codes of conduct and then performed a content analysis on 32 unique codes of conduct. Our analysis consisted of a two-cycle coding process including initial coding, and then pattern coding for clustering categories and themes together. Our aim was to better understand how game companies include codes of conduct on their websites and what content they include in the codes of conduct. The two-cycle coding process identified five main themes: (1) game company values, (2) expectations of players, (3) bad behaviors and rules, (4) moderation practices, and finally (5) document structure. Our findings suggest that codes of conduct are routinely inaccessible, if present at all, and that codes of conduct are often framed around punitive legal language that reflect policies of misconduct rather than expressing communal values and expectations. Our findings can help contribute towards community management in online games and make codes of conduct more accessible for all stakeholders in online gaming communities. We have also provided design recommendations and a design process that should help guide game companies looking to create value focused codes of conduct.

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Cited By

Wong PSingh ABrumby D(2024)I Just Don't Quite Fit In: How People of Colour Participate in Online and Offline Climate ActivismProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36373478:CSCW1(1-35)Online publication date: 26-Apr-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3637347
Sun KKanchi REllo FCo LWu MGelman SRadesky JSchaub FYip J(2024)"Why is Everything in the Cloud?": Co-Designing Visual Cues Representing Data Processes with ChildrenProceedings of the 23rd Annual ACM Interaction Design and Children Conference10.1145/3628516.3655819(517-532)Online publication date: 17-Jun-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3628516.3655819
Gardner DTanenbaum T(2023)The access control double bind: How everyday interfaces regulate access and privacy, enable surveillance, and enforce identityConvergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies10.1177/1354856523119370630:3(1186-1218)Online publication date: 19-Aug-2023
https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565231193706
Show More Cited By

Index Terms

Policies of Misconduct: A Content Analysis of Codes of Conduct for Online Multiplayer Games
1. Human-centered computing
  1. Human computer interaction (HCI)
    1. Empirical studies in HCI

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cover image Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction

Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction Volume 6, Issue CHI PLAY

CHI PLAY

October 2022

986 pages

EISSN:2573-0142

DOI:10.1145/3570219

Editor:
Jeff Nichols
Apple Inc., United States

Issue’s Table of Contents

Copyright © 2022 Owner/Author.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike International 4.0 License.

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Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 31 October 2022

Published in PACMHCI Volume 6, Issue CHI PLAY

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Cited By

Wong PSingh ABrumby D(2024)I Just Don't Quite Fit In: How People of Colour Participate in Online and Offline Climate ActivismProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36373478:CSCW1(1-35)Online publication date: 26-Apr-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3637347
Sun KKanchi REllo FCo LWu MGelman SRadesky JSchaub FYip J(2024)"Why is Everything in the Cloud?": Co-Designing Visual Cues Representing Data Processes with ChildrenProceedings of the 23rd Annual ACM Interaction Design and Children Conference10.1145/3628516.3655819(517-532)Online publication date: 17-Jun-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3628516.3655819
Gardner DTanenbaum T(2023)The access control double bind: How everyday interfaces regulate access and privacy, enable surveillance, and enforce identityConvergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies10.1177/1354856523119370630:3(1186-1218)Online publication date: 19-Aug-2023
https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565231193706
Frommel JMandryk R(2023)Individual Control over Exposure to Combat Toxicity in GamesGames: Research and Practice10.1145/36337681:4(1-3)Online publication date: 19-Dec-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3633768
Wijkstra MRogers KMandryk RVeltkamp RFrommel J(2023)Help, My Game Is Toxic! First Insights from a Systematic Literature Review on Intervention Systems for Toxic Behaviors in Online Video GamesCompanion Proceedings of the Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play10.1145/3573382.3616068(3-9)Online publication date: 6-Oct-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3573382.3616068

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