Tamara Herold
Professor of Criminal Justice, University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV)
Key Findings
- Males are most likely to act aggressively than females.
- Ticket prices and types of event will impact spectator violence.
- The external circumstances that impact spectator violence are venue characteristics (noise level, stadium location, etc.), event characteristics (crowd demographics, alcohol availability, etc.) and staff characteristics (training, experience, etc.).
- Effective control of spectator violence involves managing the external circumstances that impact spectator violence and development of a comprehensive response strategy.
Description
In the article, “Spectator Violence in Stadiums,” Herold and her co-author summarize spectator violence in arena settings to help police officers understand and effectively solve the many causes of spectator violence. Spectator violence can be categorized as verbal, gesturing, physical aggression, property destruction, throwing litter, and “warming” or rushing the field. Causes of spectator violence can range from public intoxication, student parties, ticket scalping, and more. The authors note that males are most likely to act aggressively than females. The authors suggest that ticket prices and type of event will impact spectator violence. The external circumstances that impact spectator violence are venue characteristics (noise level, stadium location, etc.), event characteristics (crowd demographics, alcohol availability, etc.) and staff characteristics (training, experience, etc.). The authors suggest for effective control of spectator violence, police should manage the external circumstances that impact spectator violence and develop a comprehensive response strategy.