Social Organizations in Online Virtual Worlds

Abstract

The development of human society has been a story of convergence into ever larger social organizations, and divergence into ever more complex division of labor. Whether called guilds, clans, tribes, or whatever, long-lasting player teams in massively multiplayer online games (MMOs) illustrate many of the features of real-world human groups, and here are analyzed from the standpoint of standard theory in the sociology of religious movements. Part of the theory holds that MMOs, like religious movements, provide compensatory social status, that may become partially real if other players offer emotional support and respect. A guild in the classical MMO, EverQuest, provides a good starting point, illustrating how members may share resources like virtual money and a neighborhood of private residences. The most influential MMO, World of Warcraft, was the scene of a major scientific conference organized by the author in connection with Science magazine in May 2008, resulting in a conventional proceedings book, and the guild organized to manage the conference is still in existence today. The simulation of ancient Egypt, A Tale in the Desert, and the recent fantasy MMO, Elder Scrolls Online, both allow an avatar to belong to multiple guilds. Statistical data on membership, and extensive experience inside these virtual organizations, support analysis of their social and economic functions, as well as recruitment and advancement processes. In the post-modern era, old definitions of societal institutions are dissolving, and guilds in MMOs can be understood from transcendental as well as mundane perspectives. The exclusive guilds in EverQuest and World of Warcraft are more like religious movements, because members must be totally committed. In contrast, multiple overlapping memberships, as in A Tale in the Desert and Elder Scrolls Online, facilitate the emergence of specialized organizations such as trading guilds, that follow a very different logic.