Monday, January 21, 2008

Members of a Tribe

Last night I was so disappointed in the Packers loss that I had to keep reminding myself that it really didn't matter, but still the loss stung. So today I was searching for the answer to the question of why it feels like it really matters when our favorite teams win or lose. What I found was reassuring. The research in sports psychology suggests that caring about a sports team, even to the extreme of wearing foam cheese heads, is actually a healthy way of connecting with others, a harking back to being part of a tribe.

In an article for Web MD, Daniel Wann, PhD, author of Sport Fans: The Psychology and Social Impact of Spectators, states "There's no doubt that a lot of sports fans are so involved that the team's performance literally becomes their own. They're going to feel the same elation from a win or sadness from a loss that is felt by the athletes, sometimes even more intensely. But for the most part, whether their team wins or loses, sports fans are more psychologically healthy than those who don't follow sports. Because in the long run, it's not really the performance that matters, it's the connection to the team."

So as much as it hurt last night to lose, today all is almost better, and I know that according to Wann's research that the sadness will fade and that sports fans are generally happier than non-fans and despite the agony of championship losses there is always next year to look forward to. So tonight I can go sleep peacefully without the stress and frustration of last night's heartbreak and know that I have at least a couple months of potentially restful slumber before the Cubs season begins!

1 comment:

SR said...

Very impressive!