4 ms·
very interesting study. A caveat to the title: > And the rules don’t apply as well to casual fans, Wann cautions. “This effect is most prominent among those wh
by hrktb 8y ago
very interesting study.
A caveat to the title:
> And the rules don’t apply as well to casual fans, Wann cautions. “This effect is most prominent among those who are most intense. In order to really reap the well-being benefits of fan identification, it needs to be a central part of your overall social identity.” The biochemical aspects of fandom only serve to reinforce those good feelings.
It’s not just watching sports, you need to be fully invested in the experience in the first place. I think the same would be true to anything we truely engage, like a chess or shogi live streams, or really anything we intimately associate with.
- craftyguy 8y agoLike politics (at least in the US). The similarities between fanatic sports fans and fanatic political party 'members'/voters are quite great. Voters generally want their 'team' to win, even if they know nothing substantial about the candidate on the 'team' they are voting for.
- stemcc 8y agoSadly true. One can't help but fear the dark extremities of this identification.
- deleted 8y ago[deleted]
- quasarj 8y agoVery interesting! I was going to propose that maybe this is why watching sports (including esports) is not something I am the least bit interested in. I was going to say, maybe my brain doesn't work like it's supposed to... but maybe I just never got into it.
- taeric 8y agoDo those have to be competing statements? Maybe you never got into sports because your brain doesn't work that way?
- brightball 8y agoWith sports there is often a major community aspect at play as well. I didn’t fully appreciate football growing up until I played. Now I’m so zoned into little details...
- travisjungroth 8y agoSimilarly, I think that to enjoy watching baseball, you have to care about the outcome. It’s a game of anticipation. If you don’t care, it’s like gambling with Monopoly money. It just doesn’t matter. Football, for example, is a bit different. There’s more of a guarantee of action.
- stock_toaster 8y agoI have enjoyed baseball games without caring about the winner. It is like watching a slow chess match, with occasional running.
- kenjackson 8y agoBeing slower than a chess match sounds impossible, yet it is an accurate description.
- astura 8y agoSame here, always enjoy watching baseball even if I am not invested in who wins.