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Performing

Page history last edited by PBworks 17 years, 4 months ago

When the group has really settled in with each-other, they know each-other well enough to push the boundaries a bit. Only by going a bit further than expected and trying new things can they Perform.

 

What does it mean to "Perform"? Well, when you achieve what you're aiming at. What is everyone aiming at? The exact details for each individual will vary, but in general we can talk about "pleasure" and "fulfilment." "Pleasure" is something that's enjoyable and fun, but it doesn't last, and usually isn't long remembered. "Fulfilment" is something that touches something deeper in a person, tends to last and will be remembered. Pleasure is fast food, fulfilment is a home-cooked meal. A quick shag is pleasurable, long commitment to a lover is fulfilling. Which you focus on in roleplaying depends on what you're after. Pleasure is good for a single session, and will be great for escapism. Fulfilment will be good for many sessions, and may inspire you to write game journals, or even write rpgs of your own.

 

So we can say that a game group is Performing when the people in the group get the pleasure and fulfilment they want from it. People in a group which is Forming will have the hope of pleasure and fulfilment; those in a Storming group may see it as working towards those things, or quickly sinking away from them; those in a Norming group will have occasional tastes of what they want, but feel that something is lacking – "it's not really bad, but it's not really good, either." The Performing group is one in which people get whichever amounts of pleasure and fulfilment they hope for, overall.

 

This is why there is no Thursday-Nighters example of Performing. In Tuckman's original analysis, a work project group was "performing" when it was achieving its goals as given it by its manager. But a roleplaying group, being a voluntary social group, sets its own goals. So what is "performing", each group has to decide for itself. Here the Player Preferences Questionnaire may be useful - everyone can decide what they want, then the group can go off and get it.

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