“You Could Say I’m a Hardcore Fan of Dragon Ball Z”: Affinity Spaces, Multiliteracies, and the Negotiation of Identity

This article follows the development of three then-adolescent male Emirati high schoolers and their literacy journeys through their engagement in various on- and offline affinity spaces. Their stories illustrate how Emirati youth assume identities and manipulate pop culture within these spaces. Underpinned by conceptualization of affinity spaces, the results of the study indicated that the participants’ engagement with multiliteracies afforded varying degrees of participation within various affinity spaces. It showcased the participants’ range of membership, their various levels of mastery and leadership as well as their active participation in producing content within the affinity space. The findings also suggested that despite the ubiquity of the Internet in the lives of the participants, offline affinity spaces remained as significant as online spaces.