Devlog #1 - Conduction Research for Game Design

September 2021, Ron (Chong Rong) Liew

Design Challenge Topic

For this design challenge, I chose to look at the demographics that deal with income inequality and labour market discrimination in our society. The goal of my research is to examine the juxtaposition between portrayals of lower income groups in the media, particularly fictional content, and reality. We find that fictional media represent the concept of income inequality with a more 'whitewashed' approach that ignores the minorities and racialized groups that deal with are currently dealing with this in our modern day society.

Research Findings/Items

• In Canada, minorities and racialized groups account for the majority active in the workforce (looking for jobs/employment) while having a higher unemployment rate than non-racialized groups. 
• The average income for racialized groups are less than non-racialized groups, the difference getting lower depending on gender and immigration status.
• Curated media, like TV programs, movies and other entertainment do not accurately depict this issue, often depicting lower income groups as white, directly juxtaposing reality.  Look at the Hunger Games movies, which represent poverty stricken groups as predominantly white.
• This perpetuated representation of income inequality that often exclude minorities enter the mainstream consciousness and results in a warped view of what income inequality is really like, drawing attention away from the real people affected by it.

Importance of Research

• These sources help design a game as we can see what narrative popular media and entertainment are portraying about those who are affected by income inequality and allows us to design games that avoid misrepresenting these groups. We can better shed light on this issue.

• I Looked for data regarding lower income demographics in Canada. The intention is to get a better understanding of how income inequality is prevalent at home and who they affect domestically.
• We examined other popular pieces of media in western society, looking for qualified insight  into how western media is affecting peoples’ outlook at the issue of income inequality, systematic discrimination and poverty as a source.

Research Conclusion  and Incorporating It in Game Design

Be mindful in incorporating design elements that represent or depict issues that affect groups and communities, especially in works of fiction. When doing so, a key goal to consider would be to draw attention to these issues and the demographics impacted by them rather than construe a false, damaging narrative.