Where the women are

Taylor, T. L. (2006). Play Between Worlds: Exploring Online Game Culture. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press. [Chapter 4: Where the women are]


Who do you imagine as gamers? answer is simple: boys or men
A study in 2001 found women's population as more than that of man in online gaming. So the problem is not that girls do not play computer games but instead it is that they are ignored.
And the author is offering a focus on gender and computer games.


Social and identity play:
MMOGs are about  connecting, chatting with people, forming and maintaining relationships. And women enjoy this connectivity.
For women identity exploration is widely seen: engagement with avatars, users are free to construct identities that doesn't really reflect their identities. - as Turkle noted, we reconstruct our identities when we are behind that virtual screen. There is another common approach for RPGs that is choosing characters that are actually opposite of how you would act and think in real life.
Avatars:  not only an object representing you in virtual world but also influence the formation of identity and relationships.
Women state that: -they enjoy customizing their characters.
-that they have become more confident as they play.