Playing the Game, Performing Gender: Women’s Negotiation in Amateur Chess

This thesis investigates how gender is structurally produced and negotiated in the context of amateur competitive chess in the Netherlands. In chess, participation remains heavily male-dominated, with only 8% of Dutch players registered as women. This study explores how women experience and navigate chess spaces, and what these negotiations reveal about the broader gender dynamics within the sport. Using feminist theories of performativity, embodiment, spatial orientation, and institutional structure, it demonstrates that gender in chess is not an incidental difference but a deeply embedded aspect of its organization and culture. Across all phases of tournament participation, women repeatedly negotiate their presence, behavior, and appearance to fit into spaces that are implicitly structured around male norms. Findings show that gendered expectations shape how women are perceived, how they perceive themselves, and how they move through chess environments. Women face pressures, not...Show moreThis thesis investigates how gender is structurally produced and negotiated in the context of amateur competitive chess in the Netherlands. In chess, participation remains heavily male-dominated, with only 8% of Dutch players registered as women. This study explores how women experience and navigate chess spaces, and what these negotiations reveal about the broader gender dynamics within the sport. Using feminist theories of performativity, embodiment, spatial orientation, and institutional structure, it demonstrates that gender in chess is not an incidental difference but a deeply embedded aspect of its organization and culture. Across all phases of tournament participation, women repeatedly negotiate their presence, behavior, and appearance to fit into spaces that are implicitly structured around male norms. Findings show that gendered expectations shape how women are perceived, how they perceive themselves, and how they move through chess environments. Women face pressures, not only to perform well but also to represent their gender and support others. Yet women also resist and adapt to these structures in creative and deliberate ways, showing that women are not passive but rather active actors within the structures they face. Rather than framing the underrepresentation of women in chess as a matter of personal interest or individual resilience, this thesis reframes it as a structural issue. It calls for a shift in responsibility and reframes the reasoning behind lower participation rates for women.Show less

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Playing the Game, Performing Gender: Women’s Negotiation in Amateur Chess