The Underdog Narrative in Movies: When Our Memories Fail Us

Heroes who win are adulated. Underdogs are a special class of heroes who are facing especially daunting odds. Why do people extend support to underdog entities in light of their bleak odds for triumph? The current study explored the idea that the underdog narrative is one of ultimate success and that this schema is strong enough to elicit false memories. We surveyed participants’ recollections of two boxing movies. As predicted, participants accurately remembered James Braddock beating the world champion in the end of Cinderella Man (underdog consistent plot) but failed to recall Apollo Creed beating Rocky Balboa in Rocky I (underdog inconsistent plot). While ruling out alternative explanations of time and emotional attachment we propose that the underdog storyline is one of eventual triumph. This distortion in memory may, in turn, contribute to unfounded optimism about the yet-to-be-determined chances of contemporary underdogs and increase the likelihood of support extended to them. Limitations and future avenues of research are discussed in detail

Fighting to the Death: Does Hockey Fighting in the NHL Affect Players\u27 Longevity?

Hockey is a sport known for its violent nature. Specifically, hockey fights have consistently been an integral part of the National Hockey League. Past research has demonstrated that players are likely to be involved in fighting as a mechanism to gain fan support, generate game momentum or enhance team camaraderie. However, fighting naturally has negative health ramifications. In the current study, we sought to investigate if players\u27 involvement in hockey fights throughout their career was associated with shorter life spans. Previous mortality studies have not distinguished hockey fighting from other aggressive aspects of this sport (e.g., in game physical contact with other players). We conducted an archival study examining the frequency of hockey fighting during the 1957–1971 NHL seasons and player longevity. A Kaplan–Meier survival analysis log-rank method and a subsequent Cox regression accounting for correlates showed no relationship between an elevated number of fights and a reduced lifespan. The lack of effect may indeed demonstrate a negligible influence on long-term health consequences in the context of a generally very physical game. However, with the relatively moderate levels of fighting in the period studied we recommend that the association be explored also in a subsequent era when NHL fighting peaked

Evidence for Cross-Cultural Support for the Underdog: Is the Affiliation Driven by Fairness and Competence Assessments?

Jesus told his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” (Matthew 19:23–24). Ditto for heroes. The current study suggests that “humble beginnings” is also a prerequisite for one to become an adulated entity. Participants from China, Israel, and Japan read of two sports teams with disparate expectations and/or financial resources about to face each other. Support was extended to the lesser one. When the two domains of comparison were contrasted, participants wished the lower resources/high expectations team to win the game. This finding was interpreted as an impetus to maintain basic fairness based on competency assessments, both fundamental and universal psychological needs, at the root of the choice to support underdogs. In conclusion, we explore how support underdog relates generally to the concept of heroism

The appeal of the underdog: Definition of the construct and implications for the self

From politics to sports to business, people are quick to categorize those at a considerable competitive disadvantage as underdogs. Moreover, there is ample support that most unattached observers do not hesitate to align themselves with underdogs, a phenomenon termed the underdog effect. While most dictionary definitions state that underdogs are especially expected to lose, the present investigation argues that people often attribute optimistic qualities to underdogs and the exceeding of expectations. A series of studies was conducted to examine the lay-person definition of what an underdog means, as well as what motivations may play a role in the underdog effect. Study 1 investigated people\u27s spontaneous definitions of underdogs by exploring the semantic network of the underdog construct through the use of the discrete associations method. Study 2 explored the hypothesized looming success component of being an underdog by asking participants to evaluate future success of underdogs vs. disadvantaged entities. Study 3 utilized the false recognition paradigm to explore schematic memory of success associated with the underdog construct, while the last study assessed whether people do truly support those at a competitive disadvantage or merely root against the favorite, as well as explored the possible role of the self in the underdog effect. Support for the looming success of the underdog was found in the first two studies while the last study demonstrated that strong self-identification with the underdog was highly correlated with support for it. Overall, the results of the current study suggest that people in American society believe that underdogs are unique exemplars which are expected to do significantly better than the initial expectations

The appeal of the underdog: Definition of the construct and implications for the self

From politics to sports to business, people are quick to categorize those at a considerable competitive disadvantage as underdogs. Moreover, there is ample support that most unattached observers do not hesitate to align themselves with underdogs, a phenomenon termed the underdog effect. While most dictionary definitions state that underdogs are especially expected to lose, the present investigation argues that people often attribute optimistic qualities to underdogs and the exceeding of expectations. A series of studies was conducted to examine the lay-person definition of what an underdog means, as well as what motivations may play a role in the underdog effect. Study 1 investigated people\u27s spontaneous definitions of underdogs by exploring the semantic network of the underdog construct through the use of the discrete associations method. Study 2 explored the hypothesized looming success component of being an underdog by asking participants to evaluate future success of underdogs vs. disadvantaged entities. Study 3 utilized the false recognition paradigm to explore schematic memory of success associated with the underdog construct, while the last study assessed whether people do truly support those at a competitive disadvantage or merely root against the favorite, as well as explored the possible role of the self in the underdog effect. Support for the looming success of the underdog was found in the first two studies while the last study demonstrated that strong self-identification with the underdog was highly correlated with support for it. Overall, the results of the current study suggest that people in American society believe that underdogs are unique exemplars which are expected to do significantly better than the initial expectations

The Underdog Effect: Definition, Limitations, and Motivations. Why Do We Support Those at a Competitive Disadvantage?

From politics to sports to business, people are quick to categorize those at a competitive disadvantage as ‘underdogs’. Moreover, there is ample anecdotal support that most people do not hesitate to align themselves with underdogs, a phenomenon called “the underdog effect”. A series of studies were conducted to examine the scope and limitations of the underdog effect. The first study explored the extent of the underdog effect and determined that resources play a crucial role in forming alliances with those whom we perceive to have the lower chance to succeed. A second series of experiments assessed whether participants, who demonstrated the underdog effect, did truly support those at a competitive disadvantage or merely rooted against the favorite. The first experiment in this series framed questions in terms of either losing or winning, thus forcing the responders to pick the more salient of their perceptions of a novel competition scenario. Support for the underdog was found to be more extreme than rooting against the top-dog. The next experiment in this series explored the human perception under “spoiler” condition, when the underdog does not have much to gain from winning the competition, but the stakes are high for the top dog due to possible adverse repercussions above and beyond of the present competition. Spoilers were not supported more than non-spoilers. Finally, the last series of studies used memory as an indirect measure of focus of attention. Some evidence for rooting against top dogs was found

Be Big or Go Home: What Determines the Winner of Fights in Hockey?

Aggression, more specifically fights between players, has always been a central part of the National Hockey League (NHL). Many spectators enjoy watching fights during hockey games and they make the games more entertaining. Since fighting is such a central part of hockey culture in America, we wanted to analyze various factors that may play a role in the outcome of a fight. By using NHL provided and fan-reported data from hockey fight websites, we ran an archival study of the nature of fights and various interacting factors from the past four seasons of the NHL. We found that although difference in height doesn\u27t predict fight outcome, weight does; the heavier player is more likely to win the fight. Also, we found that the more one-sided a fight is (fans decided a clear winner), the fight is perceived as more exhilarating (rated higher by fans). Lastly, fans are more likely to participate (vote on a winner) if a fight is perceived as more exhilarating

Investigating the Relationship Between Legal/Demographic Factors and Decisions to Transfer Minors to Adult Court -- An Update

In light of California’s passage of Proposition 57 in 2016, the present study examines the relationship between legal/demographic variables and decisions to transfer juveniles to the adult court system. The goal of Proposition 57 was to increase the possibility of rehabilitation for youth by no longer leaving transfer decisions to the sole discretion of the prosecution but instead to entrust it to judges. We used a sample of 118 reports written by forensic psychologists on behalf of the defense examining the life circumstances of minors who allegedly committed serious crimes. Utilizing regression analysis, we found that close to two-thirds of minors were kept in the juvenile system whereas the rest were transferred. Minors with at least one murder charge were more likely to end up in adult court in comparison to minors who were not charged with homicide. We found no support of racial bias in transfer decisions but an overall considerable underrepresentation of whites in contrast to an overrepresentation of black and Latino juveniles in our limited data set

The Advantage of Disadvantage: Underdogs in Politics

Political candidates are often labeled as underdogs, either by the press or themselves. This paper explores connotations associated with the underdog label in the political arena. We argue that being labeled an underdog has a strategic advantage because it is associated with positive qualities, particularly likeability. The current studies demonstrate that partisan supporters prefer to see their favored candidate as an underdog compared to people not aligned with the candidate, and underdog-labeled entities are perceived to be warmer, and no less competent, than frontrunners. Discussion focuses on the advantages and risks of carrying the underdog label in the political arena

Free-Throw Performance Under Pressure in Collegiate Basketball

The current investigation explored performance under pressure focusing on free throw shots (FTS) in collegiate basketball. FTS are unique in this game since the shots are launched from the same distance and the shooters are not guarded. Pressure was assumed since we only studied FTS in close games (3 or less points differential between the competing teams) towards the end of the game. Using archival data from the National Collegiate Athletic Association from the 2007-2008 through 2019-2020 seasons, we found a relationship between time and frequency of FTS showing that trailing teams fouled more towards the end of the game, with the intention of quickly regaining possession to overturn the score (Navarro et al., 2009). Secondly, FTS shooter season averages were compared with performance in high pressure situations, demonstrating that overall good FTS shooters performed similarly well under pressure times. Lastly, we investigated the outcome of 48,109 FTS in high pressure situations that occurred in the last 60 seconds of the game. We found that FTS performance was better when the shooting team was ahead rather than trailing or tied. These findings suggest that shooters who are ahead may enjoy a “psychological cushion” since the outcome of the game does not depend solely on their success