Nov 6

This time last year, all Phillies fans were beyond ecstatic. The Phillies were the World Series Champions! Unfortunately, this year they were unable to repeat the feat they accomplished last year, losing to the New York Yankees in Game 6. The day after the crushing blow, most Phillies fan, like myself, were proud they made it to the World Series a second year in a row. They fought long and hard and in our hearts they are still our champions.

 

Which brings me to the point at hand. Being a passionate sports fan is exhausting! These fans, like myself, live and die with their teams. Fervent fans feel as if they've played the game with their players. They work just as hard rooting for their team as the players do playing the game. When they talk about their team, they say "we" as if they've actually played the game. Have you ever been to a big game at Citizen's Bank Park? During Game 5 of the World Series, the fans were standing the majority of the time. They were screaming at the top of their lungs at every ball, strike and out. They booed, cheered and chanted at almost every play. What makes fans so fanatical about their teams? According to a very interesting article on MSNBC, Christian End, a psychology professor from Xavier University says that it's normal for people to adapt to their particular environment. "When we go to a situation where our group identity becomes more prevalent in the forefront of our mind, we are more likely to leave behind some of the standards of our personal identity. There's been a general acceptance that you can go to the ballpark and act in ways that you normally wouldn't. Anything goes." At ballparks, it's acceptable to scream at the top of your lungs. At home, or at work, it's not. Going to ballparks is an outlet for fans to express their emotions. In addition, another psychologist, Dr. Richard Lustberg says, "People take that entertainment and then relate it to their own lives. People can understand getting to the precipice of getting to a promotion, and then succeeding at it or not. The merging that occurs between fans and players is the involvement that takes you away from other issues in your life, but also the understanding that you too have been involved with highs, lows, ups, downs in your life, and that's how you relate."