David KetterHED 503: College Students in AmericaDr. Terry ThomasStudent Sub-Group Theory ReportOctober 5, 2010

In approaching this study, I had in mind to continue my research on Dagorhir. As previously noted, Dagohir is,

...one of the sub-communities on Genevaʼs campus that has, in its history, been actively rejected and mocked at worst and regarded with quiet curiosity at best. [...] this subset of students is now in its third iteration of leaders, with the fourth iteration of students beginning their freshman year. As a sub-set, though small, it has all the different components of a student social group: conflict, cliques, core beliefs, traditions, etc.

Before exploring the social location and characteristics of Dagorhir on Genevaʼs campus, it would be important to establish the larger context of this sub-group and what scholarly material has to say about it. Dagorhir, as commonly understood beyond Geneva, is an organization within a broader group of Live-Action Role Playing activities. LARP extends to everything from modern war reenactments to fantasy and science fiction narratives. It is an international phenomenon, finding a great deal of participation in the United States, Canada, and Scandinavian countries. Dagorhir is a LARP organization that brings medieval and Tolkien-based fantasy together. Within the American social culture, LARPs would be the domain of “geeks.” Tocci, in a paper presented at MITʼs conference exploring social media technology, tech culture and their interaction with society, argues well that the mainstream American culture has allowed the geek space to be “cool” and acceptable, moving beyond stereotypes previously portrayed in 1980s and 90s popular media.1

This is not to say, however, that the figure of the geek has been wholly redeemed and assimilated into mainstream culture. [...] The LARPers may seem, as some of my interviewees would suggest, too geeky (i.e., too freely creative and immersed in media, too focused on use-value)... (Tocci 28)

His interviewing population was made up of self-identified and well-evidenced “geeks” (ranging from video gamers to comic book collectors). The explicit conclusion, then, is that LARPers are strange, even for geeks. That is largely attributed to their willingness to be “freely creative.” That very attribute fascinated students in market research. In a symposium hosted by Georgia State University in 2008, Barker and Curasi presented on the relationship existing between LARPing communities and brands/markets. LARPers behave contrary to the usual process of consumers, where theory states marketers shape the identity of marketable goods and the consumer takes

1 Jason Tocci presented the defense of his dissertation Geek Cultures: Media and Identity in the Digital Age in 2009. It is one of the only pieces of scholarly literature available that is attentive to student identity formation as “geeks” or “nerds” -- not to mention the emergence of geeks within mainstream culture.

on that identity via consumption. Barker and Curasi argue that LARPers engage in a “two-way collaboration with the marketer” to engage in the “co-creation of identity” (Barker/Curasi 47). By the very nature of their relationship with the market, LARPers position themselves to be participating in the context of the mainstream culture as outsiders. At the same time, LARPers have a sense of their position. A study of LARPers in Finland and some comparative notes involving American culture reveal that this sense of being on the outside does not dominate the lives of LARPers in general. Leppälahti notes in her research that LARPers often “emphasised that they were completely ordinary people despite of playing role-playing games” (Leppälahti 290). In a fragmented culture where tribes and sub-groups abound, LARPers have pushed for the notion that their participation in one “odd” behavior does not dominate any of their other roles in life. In my observations, interviews and general research with Genevaʼs Dagorhir sub-group, they both fit and defy the international scene of LARPing. Below are the general conclusion of my engagement with the group. Dagorhir finds its social identity in its difference. They have a tradition of unconventionality and have created a social group based on an expectation that they are perceived as “strange.” Their demographics show them to be a group that is 100% white, usually committed to the club throughout the college years, in which each member identifies as some sort of “geek”, mostly of a type willing to be involved in LARPing. They have, to a degree, assigned a positive value to the notion of being “strange” in relation to the rest of society. At the same time, most members also have a strong desire to recruit others to join and “have fun” with them. Interestingly, that desire to recruit people from all parts of campus increases with each class year. Howe/Strauss indicate that conventionality is one of the core traits of a Millennial. Conventionality, for Howe/Strauss is bound up in a willingness to follow, a dislike for double standards, and a desire for social norms that are universal and creative. So, for students in Dagorhir, a strong self-identity collides with the desire for conventionality. This is particularly evident in the results of the survey of Dagorhir students taken in mid-September: most participating students are remarkably conventional and are virtually indistinguishable from their peers in attitudes and values (though, as noted in those findings, they are optimistic regarding social change). Observation over the course of the last four years has shown that Dagorhir tends to be in a state of continual transition. When it was founded, it was designed to create a regiment of Geneva students to participate in the broader Dagorhir (LARP) community. It then transitioned to a more isolated mentality in which fantasy and LARP dominated. Following that (brief) state, it was transitioned to a more game-oriented mentality. In discussing this with past and present officers of the club, it seems that the priorities of the leaders are what will determine the clubʼs direction. The early leaders were aiming for LARP and integration in the wider Dagorhir community. Later leadership has been inclined to aim for integration in the wider Geneva College community. Of course, there are strong challenges to integrating into the Geneva College community. One previous club officer and long-time participant noted that, from the student development side of things, Dagorhir is “the institutional stepchild -- they give us legitimacy; they give us money; and then they never have anything to do with us.” In an

interview, Ryan Holt, Interim Director of the Office for Student Programs & Leadership, acknowledged that the officeʼs Student Activities division does form events and activities with specific sub-groups and demographics in mind, but that Dagorhir is not one of them. Additionally, from the clubs division, he acknowledged that (1) they are one of the most reliable groups in meeting club requirements and (2) that Dagorhir has functioned as a go-to for campus outcasts, so that “we do not feel we have to worry about students who would otherwise be isolated.” Institutional stepchild, indeed. But Holt raises a point that also contributes to the difficulties of full social integration: Dagorhirʼs relationship to perceived outcasts/loners. Few members of Dagorhir are actually social pariahs. Particularly with the last two graduation years, much of the “outcast” subset has moved on. That said, the philosophy which embraced them continues on. Former club officer Daniel Kennedy argued that “Dag2 will take anyone. They accept everyone. They take them and they graft them in and make them fit.” That sounds, in some ways, like a claim that Dagorhir socializes those who live as or identify as rejects and outcasts and in some ways, thatʼs true. What they are socialized as, however, is still in that in that world between “geek” and “normal.” This can be understood in light of a simple framework first promoted by missiologist Paul Hiebert and explained in brief by John Ortberg. Communities (and, by extension, sub-groups) will tend to be either bounded-set or centered-set in their thinking. Bounded-set communities have methods, language, ideas and activities that they use to define who is “in” and who is “out.” By contrast, centered-set communities have a set of values/ideals at the center which members are aiming to move toward, but acknowledging (and accommodating) differences in degree for individuals as they move toward the center. What I observed in conversations with club officers (current and former), members, and other interviews is a consistent desire for Dagorhir to be a centered-set community. What most would go on to acknowledge, however, is that Dagorhir has a high-risk tendency of being bounded-set. So, when people are grafted in and initiated, it does define who is “in” and who is “out.” In some cases, becoming “in” means embracing a notion that you are “out” of other communities. In either case, if Dagorhir is to be integrated in the wider Geneva community, becoming a practicing centered-set community is a requirement. They have all the internal resources to accomplish this. Even in their most bounded-set, the rules and traditions (all loosely held) are subordinate to a set of values that are at once attractive and compelling. These values include community, friendship, integrity, and an active practice of consideration for others. With the recent All-Campus retreat, these values were put on display for a number of students, mostly freshmen. The activity and values of Dagorhir were well-received and accepted. So, there is both resource and opportunity for Dagorhir to be a fully integrated sub-group within the Geneva College community, but only time will show whether they take advantage of that opportunity.

2 Dagorhir is often referred to by members and alumni with the shorter “Dag.”

Bibliography

Baker, Andrew, and Carolyn Curasi. "Consequences of Co-Creation in Fantasy-Based Consumption Communities: Netnographic Analysis of a Live Action Role Playing Organization." Advances in Consumer Research 35 (2008): 46-48.

Holt, Ryan. "Interview with Student Programs & Leadership." Personal interview. 29 Sept. 2010.

Howe, Neil, and William Strauss. Millennials Go to College: Strategies for a New Generation on Campus : Recruiting and Admissions, Campus Life, and the Classroom. Great Falls, VA: LifeCourse Associates, 2007.

Keeler, Hannah, and Jason Wilson. "Interview with Dagorhir Officers." Personal interview. 28 Sept. 2010.

Kennedy, Daniel. "Interview with Dagorhir Officer Alum." Personal interview. 30 Sept. 2010.

Ketter, David. Campus Report on Student Research: Dagorhir. Survey Findings. Beaver Falls, PA, 2010.

Ketter, David. Identity Survey of Dagorhir Officers. 28 Sept. 2010. Raw data. Geneva College, Beaver Falls, PA.

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Tocci, Jason. "The Well-Dressed Geek: Media Appropriation and Subcultural Style." Proc. of MiT5, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA. 29 Apr. 2007.

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