Sport and Intergroup Communication

Sports are often the source of our greatest—and clearest—group affiliations; yet, sports are often the most evident examples of outgroup derogation as well through the magnification of differences with rivals and opposing teams. The formation and fusion of sport-based groups explore the core internal issues of leadership and followership as well as issues such as hazing, fanship, and the psychology of difference. The concepts of Basking in Reflected Glory (BIRGing) and Cutting Off Reflected Failure (CORFing), as embodied within sporting circumstances, can be understood using social identity theory and self-categorization as a lens of examination. Moreover, there are many ways in which sport-based groups inform societal structures that are interpersonal, intergroup, and global in nature, along with the theoretical and applied implications of such structures.

“You’ll Never Walk Alone”—How Loyal Are Soccer Fans to Their Clubs When They Are Struggling Against Relegation?

This article reports results from a longitudinal field study examining the psychological processes underlying soccer fans’ loyalty toward their clubs and fans’ emotional states depending on the seasonal outcome of the clubs. We found that fans’ perceptions of three relationship strength indicators—satisfaction, self-connection, and intimate commitment—and the levels of basking in reflected glory (BIRGing) did not decrease and cutting off reflected failure (CORFing) did not increase when soccer clubs of the German Bundesliga were relegated to a lower division. The levels of BIRGing, self-connection, and intimate commitment in fact increased after this event, producing intense positive, negative, and mixed emotions in fans. The results support the notion that fandom is about expressing identity and attitude to life, sharing intimate details with the club, and standing by it, in both good and bad times. Thus fans and their clubs are strongly bound to each other.

BASKING IN REFLECTED GLORY, CUTTING OFF REFLECTED FAILURE, AND CUTTING OFF FUTURE FAILURE: THE IMPORTANCE OF GROUP IDENTIFICATION

Although a large amount of research has investigated the indirect impression management tactics of basking in reflected glory and cutting off reflected failure, none had investigated the potential importance of group identification. Study 1 of the current research tested the prediction that persons maintaining their association with an unsuccessful group would be higher in group identification than those not associating with the group. This prediction was supported. However, contrary to expectations, persons belonging to a successful group were less likely than those belonging to an unsuccessful group to publicly announce their association. It was believed that those identified with the successful group believed that the group may experience failure at a later date and thus, were more concerned about protecting their future ego than enhancing their current ego. This new impression management tactic, labeled cutting off future failure, was documented in Study 2. Discussion centers on the implications of the current research for past work on impression management.