Note: while the layout of the survey may be visually unappealing on paper,
it has been designed with an eye towards clarity in the on-line format:
clear, compact paragraphs with space between them. Charts and tables
are not feasible via e-mail, considering that many people do not have
the software to correctly interpret them.
E-mailed Survey Questionnaire
Player Demographic Information
- What is your gender?
- How old are you?
- What is your race (e.g. Caucasian, Asian, etc.)?
- What is your nationality (e.g. Canadian, Mexican, etc.)?
- Do you consider yourself to be religious? What is your religion?
- How did you find the MU*s (friends, family, personal exploration, etc.)?
- What caused you to start MU*ing (e.g. needed a social outlet, friends were on-line, etc.)?
- How long have you been gaming in MU*s (e.g. 6 months to a year, between 1 to 5 years, 6 to 10 years)?
- How much time during an average week do you spend MU*ing and/or working on MU*s (e.g. up to 10 hrs per week, 10-15 hrs, 15-20 hrs, 20-25 hrs, more than 25 hrs)?
- How long is an average on-line MU* session (e.g. 1-2 hrs, 2-4 hrs, 4-8 hrs, 8+ hrs)?
- What role does MU*ing have in your life (e.g. hobby, primary social outlet, occasional diversion, etc.)?
- What percentage of your on-line MU* time is used for social Off-Stage chatting?
Character Demographic Information
- Have you ever played a character that was essentially 'you' in-game?
- Have you ever played a character with your own name?
- Which is your favorite character, and why?
- How do you decide how much like you your character is?
- How did you handle personal issues (e.g. extreme shyness, being blind, or having unpopular personal beliefs) while playing essentially yourself?
- Have you ever been surprised to discover something personal about another player?
- How did you feel about this person upon discovery?
- How did this discovery change how you dealt with them, if at all?
- How do you decide your character's gender?
- Have you ever played a character that was not your gender?
- Did you feel you succeeded in 'passing' as someone of the other gender?
- Did you enjoy playing someone of another gender, or was this something that made you feel uncomfortable?
- Has someone else successfully 'passing' as another gender ever surprised you?
- How did you feel about this person upon discovery of their RL gender?
- How did this discovery change how you dealt with them, if at all?
- How did you handle sexual issues while playing someone of another gender? Can you give an example?
- Have you ever played a character that was not your race?
- Did you feel you succeeded in 'passing' as someone of another race?
- Did you enjoy playing the character, or was this something that made you feel uncomfortable?
- Has someone else successfully 'passing' as another race ever surprised you?
- How did you feel about this person upon discovery of their RL race?
- Did this discovery change how you dealt with them? How so?
- How did you handle cultural stereotypes (e.g. others assuming an Asian woman to be a geisha, or a black man to be good at sports) while playing someone of another race?
Player & Character Connection Information
- What do you like most about playing IC?
- Are you ever masked? If so, when do you feel is the right time to be masked?
- While gaming, how do you show you are Off-Stage?
- While Off-Stage on the net, do you behave in ways you would not in Real Life? How so?
- Have you ever continued to 'play a character' rather than be Off-Stage while chatting with others socially on the net? Can you give an example?
- If you continue to play a character while Off-Stage, does the character behave in ways you would not behave in real life? How so?
- What sorts of things does your character do that you would not?
- Are there parts of your personality that you feel more comfortable expressing IC than in Real Life? Can you give an example?
- When things happen to your favorite character during play, do you feel as if they are happening to you? Can you give an example?
Player Point of View Information
- Has your time on the MU*s affected your life? If so, how?
- Has playing a character that is different than yourself affected your views on the world at all? In what ways?
- Has playing a character that is different than yourself helped you define yourself, or changed your view of yourself? In what ways?
- Has playing a character that is different than yourself changed your view of the world around you? In what ways?
- Do you feel more or less confident in face to face encounters than you do on MU*s?
- Do you do more gaming via MU*s or face-to-face? Why?
- Are most of your friends on the MU*s?
- As you've gamed over time, what personal or worldviews have remained constant for you?
- In general, do you feel the time you have spent gaming has changed your life for better or for worse?
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