Anti-social behavior and soccer identities: different continents, same mindset?

Although most soccer fans support their teams peacefully, anti-social fan behavior continues to appear across the globe. We tested the roles of identity fusion and membership to an extreme fan group (ultras) in explaining fan disorder in two understudied contexts: Indonesia (Study 1) and Australia (Study 2). Incidents of violence and antisocial behavior were rarely reported among general Indonesian (9%) or Australian fans (6%) but were significantly higher among their respective ultras groups (37%; 20%).

A soccer-based intervention improves incarcerated individuals' behaviour and public acceptance through group bonding.

As incarceration rates rise globally, the need to reduce re-offending grows increasingly urgent. We investigate whether positive group bonds can improve behaviours among incarcerated people via a unique soccer-based prison intervention, the Twinning Project. We analyse effects of participation compared to a control group (study 1, n = 676, n = 1,874 control cases) and longitudinal patterns of social cohesion underlying these effects (study 2, n = 388) in the United Kingdom.

Sport-based interventions and health in prisons: The impact of Twinning Project on prisoner wellbeing and attitudes.

Social isolation and lack of support networks are key factors contributing to mental health problems among incarcerated people, which, in turn, are associated with an increased risk of reoffending. Enabling prisoners to form positive group relations and social identities is one approach to address the cycle of ill health and incarceration. We examine the impact of a football-based intervention, the Twinning Project, on prisoners' wellbeing and social relations.

Digital contact does not promote wellbeing, but face-to-face contact does: A cross-national survey during the COVID-19 pandemic.

With restricted face-to-face interactions, COVID-19 lockdowns and distancing measures tested the capability of computer-mediated communication to foster social contact and wellbeing. In a multinational sample ( = 6436), we investigated how different modes of contact related to wellbeing during the pandemic. Computer-mediated communication was more common than face-to-face, and its use was influenced by COVID-19 death rates, more so than state stringency measures.

Social bonds are related to health behaviors and positive well-being globally.

At times of turmoil, such as during disasters, social crises, or pandemics, our social bonds can be key to receiving support and gaining certainty about the right course of action. In an analysis combining two global datasets ( = 13,264) collected during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, this study examined how social bonds with close social circles (i.e.

'I Get High With a Little Help From My Friends' - How Raves Can Invoke Identity Fusion and Lasting Co-operation via Transformative Experiences.

Psychoactive drugs have been central to many human group rituals throughout modern human evolution. Despite such experiences often being inherently social, bonding and associated prosocial behaviors have rarely been empirically tested as an outcome. Here we investigate a novel measure of the mechanisms that generate altered states of consciousness during group rituals, the 4Ds: ance, rums, sleep eprivation, and rugs.

High and highly bonded: Fused football fans who use cocaine are most likely to be aggressive toward rivals.

Background: Cocaine use among British football fans has yet to be quantified, despite its association with football-related aggression by the media. Identity fusion, a potent form of social bonding, is a well-established predictor of fan violence, which has never been investigated in relation to stimulant use.

Methods: British football fans (n = 1486) completed a self-selected online survey about how bonded they were to their club and fellow fans, their cocaine use, and aggressive behavior toward rival fans over the prior 12-months.

Social influence matters: We follow pandemic guidelines most when our close circle does.

Why do we adopt new rules, such as social distancing? Although human sciences research stresses the key role of social influence in behaviour change, most COVID-19 campaigns emphasize the disease's medical threat. In a global data set (n = 6,675), we investigated how social influences predict people's adherence to distancing rules during the pandemic. Bayesian regression analyses controlling for stringency of local measures showed that people distanced most when they thought their close social circle did.

Devoted fans release more cortisol when watching live soccer matches.

Why do some sports fans experience intense emotions when watching live matches? Identity fusion is a strong form of group alignment in which personal and group identities are activated synergistically to produce a visceral sense of 'oneness' with one's team. Here we examine the role of fusion (using a three-item state measure with high internal validity) in elevating salivary cortisol levels while watching football (n = 41). Our evidence was gathered at field laboratories during the 2014 sFIFA World Cup in Natal, Brazil, with live screenings of two Brazilian victories (Colombia, 2-1; Chile, 1-1 with penalties), and the historic semi-final loss to Germany (1-7).

Identity fusion predicts endorsement of pro-group behaviours targeting nationality, religion, or football in Brazilian samples.

A visceral feeling of oneness with a group - identity fusion - has proven to be a stronger predictor of pro-group behaviours than other measures of group bonding, such as group identification. However, the relationship between identity fusion, other group alignment measures and their different roles in predicting pro-group behaviour is still controversial. Here, we test whether identity fusion is related to, but different from, unidimensional and multidimensional measures of group identification.

The evolution of extreme cooperation via shared dysphoric experiences.

Willingness to lay down one's life for a group of non-kin, well documented historically and ethnographically, represents an evolutionary puzzle. Building on research in social psychology, we develop a mathematical model showing how conditioning cooperation on previous shared experience can allow individually costly pro-group behavior to evolve. The model generates a series of predictions that we then test empirically in a range of special sample populations (including military veterans, college fraternity/sorority members, football fans, martial arts practitioners, and twins).

Hearing in color: How expectations distort perception of skin tone.

Previous research has found that the perceived brightness of a face can be distorted by the social category of race. Thus, Levin and Banaji (2006) found, in a U.S.

Explaining Lifelong Loyalty: The Role of Identity Fusion and Self-Shaping Group Events.

Pledging lifelong loyalty to an ingroup can have far-reaching behavioural effects, ranging from ordinary acts of ingroup kindness to extraordinary acts of self-sacrifice. What motivates this important form of group commitment? Here, we propose one especially potent answer to this question-the experience of a visceral sense of oneness with a group (i.e.