Beyond the Ban: A Restorative Approach to Address Harmful Behaviors in Online Gaming Communities

• In Event: Restorative Justice

Abstract

In the past two decades, the rise of online gaming, particularly among minors and young adults, has led to increased harmful behaviors within online communities. Instances of harassment, sexual misconduct, hate speech, and/or gender-based discrimination have become relatively common in several online gaming environments (both within the videogames, or through related social media platforms such as Twitch or Reddit). Unfortunately, responses from moderators, whether users or platforms themselves, have often been limited to bans, suspensions, or deletions, failing to address victim reparation or prevent future incidents.
In response, this project aims to explore platform and moderator responses to abusive behaviors in gaming communities, seeking to conceptualize how a restorative justice framework could offer a comprehensive approach to addressing these behaviors. Through an extensive literature review, prevailing moderation strategies are juxtaposed with the restorative justice model. Therefore, challenges to real-world application are identified, and recommendations are provided for integrating restorative principles into content moderation policies. These aim to meet victims’ needs while affording offenders opportunities for amends. Finally, this conceptual framework is integrated with the results from the first victimization survey in online gaming conducted in Spain (GamerVictim Survey), developing a nuanced proposal for a restorative intervention in online gaming communities.

Authors

• Pablo Romero-Seseña, Miguel Hernández University of Elche

• Mario Santisteban Galarza, UPV / EHU Euskal Herriko Unibertzitatea

• Aiala Tejada, Miguel Hernández University of Elche

• Fernando Miró-Llinares, Miguel Hernández University of Elche