Tackling football hooliganism: A quantitative study of public order, policing and crowd psychology.

TLDR

Abstract

University of Liverpool andPolice Academy of the NetherlandsThis paper contributes to the science of crowd dynamics and psychology byexamining the social psychological processes related to the relative absence of“hooliganism” at the Finals of the 2004 Union Europe ´enne de Football Association(UEFA) Football (Soccer) Championships in Portugal. Quantitative data from astructured observational study is integrated with data from a questionnaire survey ofa group associated ubiquitously with ‘hooliganism’ – namely England fans. Thisanalysis provides support for the contention that the absence of ‘disorder’ can beattributed in large part to the non-paramilitary policing style adopted in citieshosting tournament matches. Evidence is presented which suggests that this style ofpolicing supported forms of non-violent collective psychology that, in turn, servedto psychologically marginalise violent groups from the wider community of fans.The study highlights the mutually constructive relationships that can be createdbetween psychological theory, research, policing policy and practice, particularly inrelation to the successful management of ‘public order’. The paper concludes byexploring some of the wider implications of this research for theory, policy, themanagement of crowds, social conict, and human rights more generally.Keywords: policing, crowds, hooliganism, social identity