I almost hate to reopen last week's topic of "Spoiled Fans",
but there was an article in the February 1 Newsweek entitled
"Fans Who Love Too Much" that had some interesting things to say:
...when we root for a team we all, in a sense, become
its partners, because the team becomes an extension of
our ego. ...researchers looking at fan behavior back in
the 1970s and '80s found that when the team wins, we are
given to BIRGing, or "basking in reflected glory." When
it loses, we're prone to lying low, or CORFing -- that is,
"cutting off reflected failure."...
The two psychologists find that rooting for the team of your
choice can be hazardous to your head. After a string of losses,
for instance, fair-weather fans can CORF to their heart's [sic]
content, but true grandstand groupies are denied that option.
They're stuck with their team, in sickness and in health; it
becomes part of their identity. "As a result," the article
says, "the team's performance reflects directly upon the fan:
team success is personal success, and team failure is personal
failure."...
So, obviously, the "spoiled fans" we were talking about are CORFing. That
may even be the more healthy thing to do, avoiding the damage to their
self-esteem from the "reflected failure", but the article holds out
some advantages for those "true grandstand groupies":
But to be sure, there are nice things about fanship, too. In
becoming part of your identity, it gives you a feeling of
being part of a larger group, one that shares the joys and
commiserates in the griefs.
This sounds to me like "collective effervescence", a term I stumbled upon
in the title of a Minnesota Supercomputer Institute Report. Erik and
I thought it must be relevant to being hockey fans. We're wondering if
we could get a grant to do some research in Milwaukee this spring! (and
maybe in New Mariucci next winter...) :-)
Pam Sweeney
Go Gophers!!!
(no CORFing here!)
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