Using Esports to Teach Bystander Leadership and Collaboration for Students in STEM

Abstract

Esports are a quickly spreading co-curricular setting for student involvement on college campuses. Many of the students who come to higher education institutions are already in these online virtual communities situated around competitive video games, which they can access from their dorm rooms and apartments. They communicate on headsets, and they work together in teams to accomplish objectives, deciding on strategies and roles to win. While esports are growing rapidly, the experiences of womxn and underrepresented populations in online games are often characterized by toxicity, bias, hostility, and harassment. This type of environment has parallels with STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) disciplines on college campuses and workplaces. College campuses and national funding agencies such as the National Science Foundation (2011) and the U.S. Department of Education (2014) have efforts underway to increase the presence of womxn in STEM majors. Andrew Byrne believes that if college campuses can harness esports to train bystanders to be more responsive to diversity, such training can also enhance STEM environments. This article advocates for the use of esports, or competitive video games, to train bystanders with the skills to create social change in STEM settings with the aim of increasing hospitability for aspiring female STEM professionals on college campuses.