This chapter discusses the challenges that
may emerge for live action role-play (larp)
communitie... more This chapter discusses the challenges that may emerge for live action role-play (larp) communities at each inflection point of the group life cycle. According to Tuckman, groups mature over time and move through four stages: forming, norming, storming, and performing (e.g., Tuckman 1965; Tuckman and Jensen 1977). The aim of the present chapter is to discuss the ways in which the development of real larp communities fit with Tuckman’s theory and to highlight inconsistencies that may emerge, in particular due to the multiple layers that can comprise a role-playing experience (e.g., Fine 1983). Since each stage of the group life cycle is fraught with opportunities for member exit and group dissolution, we also argue that cultural practices of successful, long-standing larp communities have manifested to meet these challenges. For example, larp groups may begin a new session with a listen-up period in which players gather in a circle to discuss the rules and clarify any misconceptions before gameplay begins.
This activity mirrors the “restorative circle” that can occur before schoolyard play (Costello, Wachtel and Wachtel 2010), which likely promotes group maintenance factors such as informal leadership and procedural voice. We hope this work will have applied value for members of successful larp groups that experience “growing pains” as, for example, the group enters the storming stage characterized by unclear boundaries and fragile self-esteem of group members (Thompson and White 2010, 4). Along with the rules and activities described by role-play scholars (e.g., Montola 2008), this chapter draws on the practices common to a specific, anonymized larp group located in the United States. The scholarly foundation for this work is grounded in various disciplines, particularly industrial/organizational and social psychology, and role-playing studies.
This chapter discusses the challenges that
may emerge for live action role-play (larp)
communitie... more This chapter discusses the challenges that may emerge for live action role-play (larp) communities at each inflection point of the group life cycle. According to Tuckman, groups mature over time and move through four stages: forming, norming, storming, and performing (e.g., Tuckman 1965; Tuckman and Jensen 1977). The aim of the present chapter is to discuss the ways in which the development of real larp communities fit with Tuckman’s theory and to highlight inconsistencies that may emerge, in particular due to the multiple layers that can comprise a role-playing experience (e.g., Fine 1983). Since each stage of the group life cycle is fraught with opportunities for member exit and group dissolution, we also argue that cultural practices of successful, long-standing larp communities have manifested to meet these challenges. For example, larp groups may begin a new session with a listen-up period in which players gather in a circle to discuss the rules and clarify any misconceptions before gameplay begins.
This activity mirrors the “restorative circle” that can occur before schoolyard play (Costello, Wachtel and Wachtel 2010), which likely promotes group maintenance factors such as informal leadership and procedural voice. We hope this work will have applied value for members of successful larp groups that experience “growing pains” as, for example, the group enters the storming stage characterized by unclear boundaries and fragile self-esteem of group members (Thompson and White 2010, 4). Along with the rules and activities described by role-play scholars (e.g., Montola 2008), this chapter draws on the practices common to a specific, anonymized larp group located in the United States. The scholarly foundation for this work is grounded in various disciplines, particularly industrial/organizational and social psychology, and role-playing studies.
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Papers by Grayson Arango
may emerge for live action role-play (larp)
communities at each inflection point of the group
life cycle. According to Tuckman, groups mature
over time and move through four stages: forming,
norming, storming, and performing (e.g., Tuckman
1965; Tuckman and Jensen 1977). The aim of the
present chapter is to discuss the ways in which
the development of real larp communities fit with
Tuckman’s theory and to highlight inconsistencies
that may emerge, in particular due to the multiple
layers that can comprise a role-playing experience
(e.g., Fine 1983). Since each stage of the group
life cycle is fraught with opportunities for member
exit and group dissolution, we also argue that
cultural practices of successful, long-standing
larp communities have manifested to meet these
challenges. For example, larp groups may begin a
new session with a listen-up period in which players
gather in a circle to discuss the rules and clarify any
misconceptions before gameplay begins.
This activity mirrors the “restorative circle” that
can occur before schoolyard play (Costello, Wachtel
and Wachtel 2010), which likely promotes group
maintenance factors such as informal leadership
and procedural voice. We hope this work will have
applied value for members of successful larp groups
that experience “growing pains” as, for example,
the group enters the storming stage characterized by
unclear boundaries and fragile self-esteem of group
members (Thompson and White 2010, 4). Along
with the rules and activities described by role-play
scholars (e.g., Montola 2008), this chapter draws
on the practices common to a specific, anonymized
larp group located in the United States. The scholarly
foundation for this work is grounded in various
disciplines, particularly industrial/organizational and
social psychology, and role-playing studies.
may emerge for live action role-play (larp)
communities at each inflection point of the group
life cycle. According to Tuckman, groups mature
over time and move through four stages: forming,
norming, storming, and performing (e.g., Tuckman
1965; Tuckman and Jensen 1977). The aim of the
present chapter is to discuss the ways in which
the development of real larp communities fit with
Tuckman’s theory and to highlight inconsistencies
that may emerge, in particular due to the multiple
layers that can comprise a role-playing experience
(e.g., Fine 1983). Since each stage of the group
life cycle is fraught with opportunities for member
exit and group dissolution, we also argue that
cultural practices of successful, long-standing
larp communities have manifested to meet these
challenges. For example, larp groups may begin a
new session with a listen-up period in which players
gather in a circle to discuss the rules and clarify any
misconceptions before gameplay begins.
This activity mirrors the “restorative circle” that
can occur before schoolyard play (Costello, Wachtel
and Wachtel 2010), which likely promotes group
maintenance factors such as informal leadership
and procedural voice. We hope this work will have
applied value for members of successful larp groups
that experience “growing pains” as, for example,
the group enters the storming stage characterized by
unclear boundaries and fragile self-esteem of group
members (Thompson and White 2010, 4). Along
with the rules and activities described by role-play
scholars (e.g., Montola 2008), this chapter draws
on the practices common to a specific, anonymized
larp group located in the United States. The scholarly
foundation for this work is grounded in various
disciplines, particularly industrial/organizational and
social psychology, and role-playing studies.