People form groups. Having a common enemy is very useful for a group. That's why we invent them.
Having an external enemy allows a group to more easily come together. It helps define a group (the definition of
our group is:
not them). Even if the enemy is all made up, calling one out allows for some group cohesion.
Both the guy who was rude to RyanT and the Harley rider that snubs my wave have the same motivations:
He belongs more to his group of Harley riders by acknowledging me as the enemy.
He is reinforcing the boundaries (or definition) of his own group.
He is increasing the value of the group
HE belongs too (the good guys/Harley riders/
NOT sportbikers) and therefore increasing his own self-worth.
When he is with his group of Harley riders, he has a new identity, one that is with the group. Snubbing me reinforced his belonging to the group and his new identity. That's why he does it. Maybe he doesn't like who he is off the bike.
If a Harley rider (who would normally snub a sportbiker) and I were stuck in an elevator and we had our street clothes on and we making small talk, do you think he'd stop talking to me if I mentioned I had a sportbike? No. Here's why:
1) People behave differently when in groups.
2) Being in a group helps to make you anonymous.
3) People treat each other differently when they are anonymous.
I wouldn't fit the description of an evil sport bike rider in the elevator. He would have seen me as an individual, not as a member of this other group. I wasn't wearing the sport bike rider uniform. Importantly,
I would have identified
him as an individual, not a Harley rider.
Does anyone know about the Stanford Prison experiment? One of the reasons the guards went sadistic was because they all became anonymous and hid behind their uniforms. They wouldn't have treated the prisoners the same way if they were all told to wear their favorite clothes and had name tags with their full name, high school mascot, and favorite ice cream flavor.
The Harley riders that signal back, that I have the pleasure of meeting, that helped Motogiro out when he was dizzy are unique.
Why? Not everyone is able to break out of the group behavior. It's hard to do. If you're in a group, you can become anonymous and lose your own sense of morality.
Back to the Stanford Prison experiment: while the fake guards were abusing the fake prisoners, more than 50 outside people were brought in to see the experiment. There was only
ONE person who actually said, hey, this is not the right thing to do.
Please forgive this long-winded post!
More info:
The Lucifer Effect by Philip Zimbardo
). Glad some folks were cool enough to check on you.
