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Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

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Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#451

Post by munk-a »

nineplay wrote: post #424
cletus wrote: post #415

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A lot of behaviour is obvious in aggregate but hard to identify in particular cases. If you make a job posting, get 5 applicants, interview 3 of them and hire 1 it's hard to point a finger and say you did (or didn't) do anything wrong. But let's say over the course of a year you receive 10,000 applications for various positions and 15% of those are African American. Now say that 10% of applicants get to the interview…

I remember the study about "second syllable names" and I remember a lot of people justifying it. "A good candidate would use a 'professional' sounding name".

And I'm sure none of those people justifying it in such a manner would similarly reject candidates that used a false name on their first pass for "acting in a dishonest manner". It's sort of a damned if you do damned if you don't situation unless you're cool going by Steve for the next few years.

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#452

Post by fleddr »

void_mint wrote: post #381
fleddr wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would agree that this is easy, but I did run into a weird edge case. First to be clear, I would never comment on anybody's body or clothes, especially not in the workplace. This is not to comply with some rule, I wouldn't have the urge to do that in the first place. It's weird and unneeded. Anyway, the edge case. My female coworker is very passionate about making custom dresses. One day, on the day before our count…

I think one of the main tenants of allyship (I'm comfortable having weirdos call me "woke" for using the word allyship) is being accepting when told you did something wrong, and working to cultivate relationships in which a person is able to _simply_ say "I didn't like that", to which that feedback is taken seriously and responsibly. I mostly think the argument "Well men will just start treating women and minorities…

"I mostly think the argument "Well men will just start treating women and minorities will start being treated like radio active objects" is cultivated and pushed forward by men that aren't willing to hear they did something wrong."

I agree. It's a narrative from the "bad" men, yet it can instill paranoia on the good ones, where they become too careful.

Is this "walking on eggshells" thinking justified? No, I think in most interactions good intent would be detected, and occasionally a minor "correction" follows if not. None of this should be even in the domain of HR reports, job loss, the like. Like you said.

But still, despite that, I do see minor paranoia on the rise.

As in the example I gave regarding the dress. My heart was screaming to say the nice thing, the compliment she deserved so much, but I picked the safer option.

Likewise, code reviews. With a male engineer, I would simply say this: there's a mistake in your code. It's over here. Here's why it's a mistake, and what its impact would be if left unsolved. A fairly clinical and dry transfer of information.

With a female engineer, although I don't want to, I find myself to be far more careful. I aim to remove any trace or shred of a doubt of the message, or the tone of the message, coming across as in any way being dismissive, oppressive, "mansplaining", name any possible negative feeling one can have about critical feedback.

It takes me 3 times as long, and I don't know if it helps at all. But it's another example of minor paranoia straining work relations.

It's an odd thing to realize that the men concerned in the article specifically treat women in a bad way, yet at the same time normal (say, good men) might treat women too carefully.

I don't have a solution, these are just observations.

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#453

Post by CydeWeys »

dralley wrote: post #223
username90 wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is about battlefield 5, the last of us was last year. More specifically people didn't like the depiction of world war 2 in this trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a7ZpQadiyqs

I love how the "realism" crowd has no issues with jumping out of planes mid-air to snipe a pilot (and then steal their plane). Or jumping from the third floor of a building onto a cobblestone street and then running away as if you had barely tripped. Or having a WWI game where half the server is carrying automatic weapons.

> Or having a WWI game where half the server is carrying automatic weapons.

It's completely beside the point now, but I do actually remember people being pissed off about that.

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#454

Post by sebastianconcpt »

dec0dedab0de wrote: post #265
cletus wrote: post #233

If you haven't read the state of California's claims here you should. It's the result of a two year investigation and the claims are.. shocking. I want to make a point about "culture fit". "Culture fit" in a company typically comes down to "we like you" and the reason why people like other people is that they are like them. Similar age, background, whatever. It's why Stanford grads probably like other Stanford grads.…

I want to make a point about "culture fit". "Culture fit" in a company typically comes down to "we like you" and the reason why people like other people is that they are like them. Similar age, background, whatever. There are plenty of people who like each other that have nothing in common. The idea that the reason people like people is because they are like them just feels ridiculous to me, but maybe I am an outlier…

You can like people that is very different in the surface but share the psychological matrix of values. It can be extraterrestrial that you will like him/her as old friends in an instant. On the other hand you will not like someone that has a subverted or inverse matrix of values. An example of the inverted values are the radical left describing conservatives. It's a fundamentally incompatible world-view, completely irreconcilable even if they are biological twins.

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#455

Post by CobaltFire »

cletus wrote: post #448
CobaltFire wrote: post #430

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sidestepping the parent (and the mention of the studies; I have heard of but not read them) to ask you a question: Where did you find/learn the term "second syllable name" and "first syllable name"? I tried looking it up and struck out (aside from some requests for baby names like that), though it's quite descriptive and makes perfect sense. It did lead me to the wikipedia article [0] about African-American names, wh…

I believe (but I'm not 100% certain) that I personally first heard this term when I heard about these studies. I remember it because it's something that hadn't occurred to me. But that's the thing: your mind is capable of making these subconscious connections. So if you happen to be discriminatory against African Americans, names are going to be a signal whether you realize it or not. I'm oddly reminded of some TikTo…

Thanks for the follow-up!

I'm very aware of the biases that I gained growing up in my household and do my absolute best to crush them. That's why this term stuck out to me; it's not something I had heard but makes absolute sense when I look at how people in my family react to names.

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#456

Post by throwequality »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #434
cletus wrote: post #233

If you haven't read the state of California's claims here you should. It's the result of a two year investigation and the claims are.. shocking. I want to make a point about "culture fit". "Culture fit" in a company typically comes down to "we like you" and the reason why people like other people is that they are like them. Similar age, background, whatever. It's why Stanford grads probably like other Stanford grads.…

I agree with 98% of this :-). And it absolutely flows from the top. What is more, good leadership knows this and understands that no matter how something happened, they are responsible for it. The entire games industry however has a reputation for being "bad" at empowering good leadership. But let's talk about 'culture' for a moment. In my experience, the tech workers in the US make their "work" their "life" way too…

Political beliefs / affiliation (especially when mainstream) is a protected class though. Was this individual also "bringing it to work"?

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#457

Post by jjdin14 »

Andrew_nenakhov wrote: post #76
waythrifty5746 wrote: post #12

Good, walkouts are an effective way to drive organizational change. We had massive walkouts at Wayfair due to our policy of selling furniture to US Customs concentration camps that held tens of thousands of children. Only took Wayfair a few years to somewhat change their policy in a roundabout and nondescript way, but at least some movement took place.

Ah, those (in)famous concentration camps that instantly turn to migrant shelters when democrats are in power.

If illegal immigrants aren't given free food and boarding in a hotel they're literally in a concentration camp!

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#458

Post by fleddr »

andrewzah wrote: post #392
fleddr wrote: post #353

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would agree that this is easy, but I did run into a weird edge case. First to be clear, I would never comment on anybody's body or clothes, especially not in the workplace. This is not to comply with some rule, I wouldn't have the urge to do that in the first place. It's weird and unneeded. Anyway, the edge case. My female coworker is very passionate about making custom dresses. One day, on the day before our count…

Yes, those are a bit more nuanced. As noted in the sibling comment, part of this is also coming across as someone who listens when people voice their concerns. For the dress issue, it really just depends on the context and your relationship with the person. If it's your -friend- who you actually know makes custom dresses as a hobby, why would they be upset at a (genuine) compliment? My friends who pay attention to cl…

"Idiots ruin things for everyone else."

I think that sums it up nicely, and indeed was my main point.

The female engineer we've worked with on a daily basis for years, in a very friendly, cooperative and relaxed team. So very far from a stranger to us. She's one of us, basically.

I'd agree that it would be incredibly unlikely that if we did make that compliment, anything bad would happen. But the fact that all five of us shut up regardless, I find telling.

I guess it's math, in a way. If there's a 1% change of getting into trouble for trying to say this nice thing, not saying anything means the chance is 0%, so the better option.

Yes, in the case of the feedback problem with the VCs, it was actually women taking issue with the lack of real critical feedback. They wanted it, they didn't want the muddied down overly protective version.

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#459

Post by ChuckMcM »

throwequality wrote: post #456
ChuckMcM wrote: post #434

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with 98% of this :-). And it absolutely flows from the top. What is more, good leadership knows this and understands that no matter how something happened, they are responsible for it. The entire games industry however has a reputation for being "bad" at empowering good leadership. But let's talk about 'culture' for a moment. In my experience, the tech workers in the US make their "work" their "life" way too…

Political beliefs / affiliation (especially when mainstream) is a protected class though. Was this individual also "bringing it to work"?

The explanation I heard was that a bumper sticker on their car outed them.

Re: Video game developers at Activision Blizzard say they'll walk out Wednesday

#460

Post by rascul »

kayodelycaon wrote: post #427
rdaystrom wrote: post #411

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Aren't all swords double-edged? I would think that a single-edged sword would simply be a knife. Or an axe.

Sabers? Katanas?

Also falchions, scimitars, sabres, cutlasses, and falcatas. Additionally, I have some double edged knives.
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