SECOND LANGUAGE SOCIALIZATION IN STRONGHOLD KINGDOMS AN ETHNOGRAPHIC CASE STUDY By SEYED ABDOLLAH SHAHROKNI A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY Department of Teaching and Learning DECEMBER 2018 © Copyright by SEYED ABDOLLAH SHAHROKNI, 2018 All Rights Reserved © Copyright by SEYED ABDOLLAH SHAHROKNI, 2018 All Rights Reserved To the Faculty of Washington State University: The members of the Committee appointed to examine the dissertation of SEYED ABDOLLAH SHAHROKNI find it satisfactory and recommend that it be accepted. Thomas L. Salsbury, Ph.D., Chair Sarah N. Newcomer, Ph.D. Pamela Jean Bettis, Ph.D. Donald Douglas McMahon, III, Ph.D. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENT I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my dear chair, Dr. Tom Salsbury, and wonderful committee members, Dr. Pam Bettis, Dr. Sarah Newcomer, and Dr. Don McMahon. I appreciate your trust in me and this work, what you knew was close to my heart, and your generous support throughout this study. I would also like to thank my online friends, faction members, and participants. There is no way for me to thank you all, so, as Bear always says, “I prefer to let my captains do the talking.” You’re great folks—thanks for all the good times we have had together! Your presence in my life has been incredibly virtually real. Thank you! My heartfelt thanks go to Dr. Joy Egbert, who brought me here, and is the reason for all the wonderful things that have happened to me. Not only did I learn a lot from her as her RA and student, but also I truly en“Joy”ed my time here. Words cannot express how grateful I am for this life-changing opportunity that you kindly gave me. My special thanks go to my dear professors Dr. Barbara Ward, Dr. Joy Egbert, Dr. Jane Kelly, Dr. Kelly Puzio, Dr. Pam Bettis, Dr. Chad Gotch, Dr. Kira Carbonneau, and Dr. Suzanne Anderson, whom I was blessed to be their student and learn from them, not only the course materials but also how to be a caring teacher. Likewise, I offer my sincere gratitude to our department chair, Dr. Tariq Akmal, and staff, Patricia Iulo and Julie Killinger, for doing their best to make us feel safe. Also, my heartfelt thanks go to Kelly McGovern and Nick Sewell in the Office of Graduate Education for all the wonderful work they do to keep us well-managed. I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to my mother, Fakhrosadat, and (late) father, Mohammad Hassan, who have always been there for us throughout life hardships and difficult iii times--your love and support for us have always warmed my heart and inspired me. I also thank my dear brothers, Hamid and Saeed, for their constant support. It has been over three years since we parted, and I have not seen you for over a year. I miss you so much and hope to see you soon. I specially miss my nephew, Mohammad Taha! Last but not least, I would like to thank all my dear friends and family in Pullman and the US, who made the years of my stay one of the most beautiful periods of my life journey. I feel so lucky that our paths crossed. I specially thank my dear friend and roommate, Mohamed Elhess, whose company I have enjoyed for more than two years. Thank you all so much! Go Cougs! iv SECOND LANGUAGE SOCIALIZATION IN STRONGHOLD KINGDOMS AN ETHNOGRAPHIC CASE STUDY Abstract by Seyed Abdollah Shahrokni, Ph.D. Washington State University December 2018 Chair: Thomas L. Salsbury This ethnographic case study aims to examine second language socialization (SLS) in a massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) called Stronghold Kingdoms (SK). To explore the affordances of this community for SLS, the social dynamics in a faction community during 4 life-time periods, namely, war, post-war peace and life in exile, end of the world, and immigration to a new world were investigated using three methods: observation, analysis of records (in-game forum exchanges), and interview. The results suggested that the norms of the faction community, that is, communication, ccollaboration, skills, support, rules, closeness, trust, status, and shared experiences provided a supportive environment for SLS. Moreover, the results of an interview conducted with one of the faction non-native English speakers (NNES) revealed that the affordances of SK were important in the development and improvement of second language skills. This study offers important implications for second language pedagogy and research. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENT................................................................................................................ iii ABSTRACT .....................................................................................................................................v LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................1 Objectives and Research Questions ...............................................................................6 Chapter Overview ..........................................................................................................6 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................9 Second Language Socialization .....................................................................................9 SLS and Sociocultural Theory .....................................................................................11 MMOGS and SLS ........................................................................................................13 Past Scholarship: Two Orientations in Research .........................................................16 SLS in Online Participatory Communities ..................................................................16 SLS in VWs and MMOGs ...........................................................................................18 Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................21 The Contribution of This Dissertation to the Field ......................................................25 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY ..........................................................................26 Methodology ................................................................................................................26 Setting/Field .................................................................................................................29 Participants ...................................................................................................................33 vi Data Sources ................................................................................................................34 Data Analysis ...............................................................................................................37 Credibility and Trustworthiness/ Potential Limitations ...............................................37 Positionality .................................................................................................................38 CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS ..........................................................................................41 Coding ..........................................................................................................................42 Sociocultural Norms ....................................................................................................44 Conversation Analysis .................................................................................................77 The Big Picture ............................................................................................................84 Interview ......................................................................................................................86 Final Thoughts .............................................................................................................88 Reflexivity....................................................................................................................91 CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION....................................................................................96 Research Questions ......................................................................................................96 Contributions to the Field ............................................................................................98 Implications for Practice and Research......................................................................101 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................104 APPENDIX INTERVIEW PROTOCOL .............................................................................................119 INTERVIEW TEXT ........................................................................................................120 DEBATE ..........................................................................................................................125 ABBREVIATION TABLE ..............................................................................................130 vii LIST OF TABLES Page Table 3.1: Participants’ Ranks at the