Vol. 16 No. 2 (2025): MEDIA EDUCATION – Studi, ricerche e buone pratiche
Articles

Rappresentazioni sociali della disabilità nei videogiochi: stereotipi, narrazioni e analisi critica

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  • Claudia Lafranconi,
  • Cristina Gaggioli
Claudia Lafranconi
Università per Stranieri di Perugia, Italia
Cristina Gaggioli
Università per Stranieri di Perugia, Italia
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/me-18897

Published 2025-12-30

Keywords

  • disability,
  • media education,
  • representations,
  • stereotype,
  • videogames

Copyright (c) 2025 Claudia Lafranconi, Cristina Gaggioli

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

This paper explores the ways in which disability is represented in video games, with particular attention to the patterns, stereotypes, and narrative mechanisms that shape social perception. The aim is to demonstrate how inclusive representations can contribute to promoting social inclusion and educating players to adopt a critical and informed understanding of diversity. In the first part, the study reviews the literature on key concepts such as accessibility, stereotypes, representations, and processes of identification, framing them within a media education perspective. Subsequently, two analytical frameworks are proposed to investigate the relationship between the modes of disability representation and the structural and narrative components of video game worlds. Finally, the paper presents concrete examples of video games in which disability is portrayed either positively or problematically, highlighting both the opportunities and challenges in creating inclusive gaming experiences.

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