An Ethnography of Early Canadian Varsity Esports by Benjamin J
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An Ethnography of Early Canadian Varsity Esports By Benjamin J. Scholl A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies through the Department of Communication, Media and Film in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts at the University of Windsor Windsor, Ontario, Canada 2020 © 2020 Benjamin Scholl An Ethnography of Early Canadian Varsity esports by Benjamin J. Scholl APPROVED BY: ______________________________________________ M. Ganzin Odette School of Business ______________________________________________ S. Bryant Department of Communication, Media and Film ______________________________________________ V. Manzerolle, Advisor Department of Communication, Media and Film June 17th, 2020 DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY I hereby certify that I am the sole author of this thesis and that no part of this thesis has been published or submitted for publication. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge, my thesis does not infringe upon anyone’s copyright nor violate any proprietary rights and that any ideas, techniques, quotations, or any other material from the work of other people included in my thesis, published or otherwise, are fully acknowledged in accordance with the standard referencing practices. Furthermore, to the extent that I have included copyrighted material that surpasses the bounds of fair dealing within the meaning of the Canada Copyright Act, I certify that I have obtained a written permission from the copyright owner(s) to include such material(s) in my thesis and have included copies of such copyright clearances to my appendix. I declare that this is a true copy of my thesis, including any final revisions, as approved by my thesis committee and the Graduate Studies office, and that this thesis has not been submitted for a higher degree to any other University or Institution. iii ABSTRACT What follows is an ethnographic study of Canada’s first varsity esports program. Esports – formalized competitive videogaming – is a cultural and industrial phenomenon taking root in North America. This research yields rich qualitative data, collected through participant observation and interviews with esports student-athletes, providing insider perspectives on the institutionalization of the organizational field. My interdisciplinary approach offers insight on institutional pressures and their relationship to stakeholders, player agency, and institutional work – broadly speaking the creation, maintenance, and disruption of organizational social institutions. In 2011, institutionalists Lawrence, Suddaby and Leca called for the refocused exploration of the relationship between individuals, their agency, and institutions. Additionally, they emphasized the importance of bridging the gap between critical and institutional views of organizational behaviour. Critical scholars, such as T.L. Taylor, declared the importance of researching esports, for its consequences on our understanding of socio-technical systems and evolving traditional institutions (Taylor, 2018). This thesis’ discussion of Foucauldian power dynamics, in relation to its findings, rears significant questions pertaining to the perpetuation of biased institutions via normative isomorphic pressures, as well as meaning making and identity work. Thus, bridging critical and institutional views to explore the trends of progressing professionalization and gamer-identity in the field. iv DEDICATION To the memory of my Godfather, Tim Chevalier Your unceasing hard work, strength, and dedication to God and family will forever be an inspiration to me. I love and miss you. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I’d like to acknowledge the support of my parents Mark and Linda Scholl, as well as my grandparents Hattie & Lou, and Jean & Alec, I love you all and strive to find vocation in my research that lives up to the examples you’ve made for me. I also want to thank my supervisory committee, Drs. Manzerolle, Bryant, and Ganzin. I’ve relied on each of you for your specialized knowledge and couldn’t have pulled this off without your guidance. Your expertise and assistance made this process incredibly structured and enriching, I can’t thank you enough. Lastly, I’d like to thank Drs. Asquith and Brown for inspiring me to pursue a minor in communication, media and film and master’s in communications and social justice, respectively. Your dedication to lectures and enthusiasm for this discipline encouraged me to be here and I’ll be forever thankful for that. Let’s hope the following makes you all proud! vi TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY ........................................................ iii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................. iv DEDICATION .............................................................................................. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................... vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS/SYMBOLS ................................................... x NOMENCLATURE .................................................................................... xi INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................ 1 METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH ........................................................... 4 Data Generation ....................................................................................... 11 Data Analysis .......................................................................................... 18 Constitutive Elements of a Demand ........................................................ 22 Demands: A condition ......................................................................... 24 Demands: Requests with Authority ..................................................... 25 Demands: Economic ............................................................................ 26 Demands: Pressure .............................................................................. 28 CONCEPTUAL APPROACH .................................................................... 30 LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................... 34 Canonical Works in Neo-institutionalism ............................................... 38 vii Canonical Works in Esports .................................................................... 49 The E- ‘Sports’ Debate ............................................................................ 55 Arguments Against Esports as ‘Sport’ ................................................ 56 Arguments in Favor of Esports as ‘Sport’ ........................................... 60 FINDINGS .................................................................................................. 62 Canadian Varsity Esports at a Glance ..................................................... 63 Involvement in Practice ........................................................................... 68 Frequency ............................................................................................ 69 Content ................................................................................................. 72 Involvement in Competition .................................................................... 81 Hearthstone .......................................................................................... 88 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate ................................................................ 96 DISCUSSION ........................................................................................... 105 Isomorphism .......................................................................................... 106 Agency .................................................................................................. 112 CONCLUSIONS ...................................................................................... 120 Limitations ............................................................................................ 123 Future Research ..................................................................................... 124 REFERENCES ......................................................................................... 127 viii APPENDICES .......................................................................................... 137 Appendix A: Consent to Participate in Research .................................. 137 Appendix B: Interview Script ............................................................... 141 Appendix C: Double-Entry Journal ....................................................... 145 Appendix D: Phases of Thematic Analysis ........................................... 146 Appendix E: Labeling Spreadsheet ....................................................... 147 Appendix F: Thematic Funnel ............................................................... 148 Appendix G: Constitutive Elements of a Demand ................................ 149 Appendix H: Definitions of a Demand ................................................. 150 Appendix I: Expanded Fieldnotes on Discord ...................................... 151 Appendix J: Images from the Field ....................................................... 153 Appendix K: Extended Interview Transcript - Hearthstone ................. 156 Appendix L: Expanded Participatory Observation Fieldnotes .............. 161 VITA AUCTORIS .................................................................................... 164 ix LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS/SYMBOLS CQB: Close-quarters combat