A fandom shitstorm - redux

[filthgoblin]

I heard about this questionnaire initially through perdiccas, promoted through crack_van [though the community creator has since expressed deep regret at ever having gotten involved]. The questionnaire itself [questions listed in two parts here and here] was thought by some to be skeevy. I can see that argument for that, but I was more concerned about the fact that not only was it poorly worded and constructed, but didn't seem to offer any way in which to test the "cognitive neuroscience" theories that the researchers were positing. How can anyone claim to draw conclusions about cognition and neurocortical processing from a questionnaire? You'd need to do some kind of hands-on studies with neurological testing equipment to do that.

Fans objected, politely at first, then with increasing vehemence. The shitstorm peaked around about the time that the lead researcher suggested that women who enjoy slash fiction are neurocognitively the same as men who get off on transsexual/transgender pornography. Um, whut?

This article explains in a much more succinct, eloquent and cogent way than I could why fans were intensely irritated by two researchers who are admittedly outsiders to fandom and find the concept of fannish ways "fascinating". It also has some really interesting links to reactions from fans on LJ and DW to having been approached by them. I'd also recommend this post that says really clearly why fans do not want to be subject to an non-participatory anthropological or poorly constructed neurocognitive study by people who just want to point and stare.

Comments

[filthgoblin.livejournal.com]

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