Kate Fedchun

Biography

Kate Fedchun is a PhD student with a background in sociology, philosophy, and feminist theory. After completing her BAH in sociology and philosophy from Queen’s University, she completed a two-year diploma program at George Brown College to become an assaulted women’s and children’s counsellor & advocate (AWCCA). She spent a few years in Toronto working as a women’s counsellor in the violence against women sector in a shelter and at a crisis helpline. Then, she moved to Ottawa to pursue an MA in sociology and gender studies at the University of Ottawa. Her master’s thesis, A Feminist Autoethnography: On Hegemonic Masculinity, Failure, and Subversive Play in League of Legends, explores these elements through the lens of feminist and queer game studies. With coursework complete, she is currently working on her second comprehensive examination on affect theory. She is a fellow at the Research on Comics, Con Events, and Transmedia Laboratory (RoCCET Lab). She also works part-time for Statistics Canada, researching blockchain, cryptography, and authenticating data.

Research Interests: video games; gamer identity; affect theory; toxicity; e-Sports; queer theory; comics; feminism; violence against women.