Amity Institute of Behavioural & Allied Sciences

Crowds
(Theories and More)

Social Psychology – Module IV

By
Shikha Jha
B.A. App.Psychology
Semester II

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Table of Contents

• Meaning of Crowds
• Characteristics of Crowds
• Types of Crowds
• Role of a Leader in a Crowd
• Collective Behaviour and Related Ideas
• Theories of Crowds (Extd.)

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What is a Crowd?
A crowd is said to be a collection of individuals who are all attending to
some common objects, their reaction being of a simple prepotent sort and
it is accompanied by some strong emotional responses. The collection of
human beings in the market, on the road, near a magic show, in front of
the cinema hall, marriage ceremony or meeting hall is designated as a
crowd.
According to Kimballyoung “A crowd is a gathering of considerable
number of persons around a centre or point of common attention.” 
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Characteristics of Crowds
(i) Transitoriness:
Contrary to a psychological group which is more or less permanent a crowd is quite
temporary or short lived. Suppose an accident has taken place on the main road of a
crowded market place. Large number of people who have come for purchases etc. gather
together and form a crowd.
After the wounded persons are carried to the hospital, the crowd disperses and
disintegrates. Several such examples in our day to day life can be cited to explain the
transitory nature of crowd behaviour
.
(ii) Shoulder to shoulder Contact:
In a crowd there is more physical contract than a group. In comparison to a group, a
passive crowd or an audience in active crowd there is greater shoulder to shoulder contact
and forward and backward movement.
Suppose some houses in a village have caught fire and the people are trying to extinguish
the fire. Here, there is a lot of forward and backward movement. People who are in the
fringe try to move up to the centre and those in centre try come back to fringe.
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(iii) Common and Primary Motivation:

A sense of mass strength is found in a crowd situation from the common motivation
of the crowd members. When the attention is more similar, the focus of attention is
greater and so there is more interaction as everyone would try to be nearer to the
focus of attention.
A crowd has been formed when a thief has been caught by the local people. Those
who gathered to see the thief go to the centre and after viewing it come back to the
fringe and vice versa.

(iv) Interaction:
In the process of interaction, all the psychological functions like perception, learning,
thinking, emotion and motivation are involved. They are also influenced by the
behaviour of the group in a greater or lesser degree. As a result, the global behaviour
of the group members show a sudden change.
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(v) Backward and Forward Movement:

In a crowd, there is constant forward and backward movement. Some are at
the fringe and some are at the centre. Those who are at the fringe are not the
active members of the crowd. They are called passive onlookers.

(vi) Suggestion and Imitation:

Every member of an action crowd is particularly influenced by what others in
the crowd do and accordingly imitates others in the crowd. When people see
others running towards a gathering even without knowing what has happened,
and without even ascertaining what is the matter, why people have gathered,
they also run.
This is due to the effect of suggestion. They imitate them and behave in a
similar way. After some students have gathered near the principal’s office on a
very small problem, other students hear or see them and they also start running
there.
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(vii) Mental Homogeneity:
The members of an active crowd show a similarity in feelings, thought
and action even though they come from different socio-economic and
educational background. This uniformity in behaviour irrespective of
difference in I.Q., education and occupation led LeBon to coin the
concept of ‘group mind’. LeBon said that the individual in a crowd looses
his originality, his own personality and acts like machine.

(viii) Irrationality and Heightened Emotionality:

The members of an action crowd or mob are found to be most intolerant,
irrational, indisciplined and unreasonable. That reasoning which suits
their purpose at the very moment is only utilized. The advantages and
disadvantages, the faults and repercussions of this behaviour is never
examined in a cool and rational manner.
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Types Of Crowds

I
The Like-Interest or Casual Crowd:

In a like-interest or casual crowd, “there is a common external focus

of interest but not a common interest”. Thus when a crowd gathers to
watch a street accident or a fire, the individuals who compose the
crowd seek merely to satisfy their curiosity. Sometimes such a crowd
may gather out of sheer panic. These crowds have no other object to
fulfil. Sometimes such a crowd is also characterised as a spectator
crowd.
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II
The Common-Interest or Action Crowd:

A common-interest or action crowd is brought together by some common purpose. The

crowd that participates in a popular celebration, in a spontaneous outburst of group joy
or hatred, or in a strike demonstration, falls under this category.
The common purpose which brings such a crowd together may either be expressly
defined, as in the case of a revolutionary crowd which has a specific goal to achieve;
or, the purpose may not be very sharply defined, as in the case of a crowd that gathers
to celebrate, say the Republic Day.
In most cases the fulfilment of individual self-interest is the basis of this kind of crowd
behaviour. They exhibit in their conduct all the characteristics of crowd behaviour.
Though each depositor has his own personal interest to fulfil, they rally together in
order to serve which they consider to be their common interest. Barriers between
individual subscribers are broken, and each stimulates the other. As a consequence,
suggestibility of each individual grows.
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III
Expressive Crowd:

Sometimes a group of people exhibit in their conduct all the attributes of

crowd behaviour in order to express their feelings of joy or sorrow.
Thus, the supporters of, say, a victorious football team express their joy
by singing and dancing on the streets and shouting various kinds of
slogans.
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IV
Conventionalized Crowd:

We know that sometimes people are allowed, on certain specific occasions, to be non-
conformist in respect of certain social norms in order to give release to pent-up feelings
and emotions.
For instance, while celebrating ‘holi’ people exhibit, in their conduct, some of the
characteristics of crowd behaviour. Crowds of this type are known as conventionalized
crowd.
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V
Audience:

An audience is defined as an institutionalized form of crowd. It is a passive crowd.

Sometimes some lectures by eminent personalities are arranged and announced. So people
gather together to hear the lectures. There is also face to face and shoulder to shoulder
contact.
But here we do not have close contact or movement as found in a crowd. No backward or
forward movement is found as everything has been arranged in an orderly manner and the
seats are also arranged for all the persons. But with regard to the lecture there is a face to
face contact.
In an audience there is a definite and specific purpose in view. The purpose here is that
people want to listen to a particular lecture. It meets at a predetermined time and place.
But this is not found in a crowd. Though in an audience interaction takes place between
different members such interaction is different from the interaction taking place in an
active crowd.
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VI
Action Crowd
a) Active Crowd /Mob:

People gathering in a musical function is a passive crowd. But, this passive crowd can
turn to an active crowd or mob at any moment. When the hall is very small and a large
number of persons have turned up to attend the musical show, there is enough
disturbance due to want of space and so it turns to a mob where people start throwing
chairs, tables on the dias, at other audiences, creating utter confusion and there is a lot
of emotional reaction.
On the other hand, a mob or an active crowd can turn to an audience or passive crowd
when someone, may be the leader stands up to pacify the members or explains the
purpose and aim for which the crowd has gathered. Thus, there is always a switch over
from audience behaviour to mob behaviour and mob behaviour to audience behaviour.
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.
b) Panic Crowd.

In a mob like attacking the employer by the employees, there is more irrationality,
violence and fighting and less responsibility, less social control. In a panic crowd like
fire or danger like train accident, attack, there is always a flight from the centre. When
the enemy is nearer panic is found among soldiers.
Action crowd can also be divided into attack, rage and flight, fear types. In action
crowd all the elemental motive of the individual in their raw form are expressed.
Socialized motives and social values are thrown to the background, for the time
being.
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Role of a Leader in a Crowd

In a crowd, leader plays a very significant role. Particularly in mob, activity or

action crowd the prestige, power and personality of the leader is very much
demonstrated. The members of the crowd identify with the leader and behave
according to the direction of the leader. Hence, the role of the leader is of
tremendous importance in an action crowd.
The leader suggests as well as directs. A crowd cannot operate unless there is a
leader. When the leader disappears from a mob situation or goes underground, a
new leader may emerge for the time being otherwise the crowd will definitely
disintegrate.
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Collective violence and Related ideas

• Collective violence, a violent form of collective behaviour engaged in

by large numbers of people responding to a common
stimulus. Collective violence can be placed on a continuum, with one
extreme involving the spontaneous behaviour of people who react to
situations they perceive as uncertain, threatening, or extremely
attractive.

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Riots
When groups of people become dissatisfied and frustrated with existing
economic and political institutions, there may come a point when the
breakdown of law and order is preferred to their preservation. During
the chaos of a riot, many emergent forms of behaviour occur that might not
occur otherwise. Acts of violence take on new meaning; they are now viewed
as legitimate by the performers and the active witnesses.

A Black man being assaulted by a group of

The streets of Mumbai, 1993 . White Trump supporters ; OH.
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Rebellions & Revolutions

Rebellions involves large-scale violence directed against the state by its own civilian
population. Rebellions try to change the government or some of its policies but not the
society itself. Intense government repression seems to deter rebellion, whereas mild
repression tends to stimulate it. Thus, mild repression serves to outrage citizens but leaves
them with the resources to organize resistance.

Revolutions can sweep away the old order. Unlike coups and rebellions, revolutions can
cause radical changes in the institutions of government and bring about basic changes in
society as a whole. The French Revolution destroyed the ancien régime and advanced
ideas of social and political equality. The Russian Revolution of 1917 ended the Russian
monarchy, introduced communism, and established the Soviet Union. Revolutions often
involve collective acts of violence that are deemed justifiable by those who participate in
such historic events.
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The Indian Rebellion,1875. The French Revolution, 1789-99.

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Theories of Crowd Behaviour

• LeBon
• McGougall
• Allport
• Jung and Martin
• Freud

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I- LeBon’s Crowd Mind Theory:

LeBon has put forth some important point to explain the

causes of action crowd or mob. He holds that the origin of
crowd lies in the formation of a kind of collective mind or
crowd mind which makes them feel and act in a manner quite
different from that in which each individual of them would
feel, think and act were he in a state of isolation.

So, according to psychologists in favour of crowd mind it is

due to the influence of a group or collective mind which
arises when some people gather together with a common
motivation, common goal or common purpose. They further
argue that when an individual is a member of a particular
Gustav LeBon crowd, he looses his personal consciousness.

The sense of responsibility is loosened and there is a rise of

common crowd consciousness and lapse of personal
consciousness.
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Criticism Of LeBon’sTheory

LeBon’s view is criticised on the ground that the sensation and feelings of an individual
in a crowd is in no way different from the sensation and feelings when he is in a lone
situation. The crowd as such has no feeling and experience of an isolated type.

The difference in behaviour, they say is not due to crowd mind or crowd consciousness
but due to the difference in the situation i.e., the influence of the crowd situation or
environment brings a change in behaviour. Further, because of similarity of perception
and motivation there is similarity in behaviour. Some people may join a crowd but may
remain in the fringe as passive onlookers without taking any active part.

Those individuals who are oppressed for a long time, whose desires for love and lust,
power, prestige and recognition, sympathy and understanding are repressed and
suppressed they take major part in a crowd behaviour. Thus, it is said that the individual
in a crowd behaves just as he would behave alone. The behaviour which he would have
shown when alone is exaggerated in a crowd situation.

Thus, it appears that LeBon rhas neglected the individual factor in crowd behaviour.
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Le Bon’s ideas may be summarized as follow:

• (i) Crowds emerge through the existence of anonymity (which allows a
decline in personal responsibility);
• (ii) In contagion (ideas moving rapidly through a group; and
• (iii) Through a suggestibility. In the crowd, the individual psychology is
subordinated to a ‘collective mentality” which radically transforms
individual behaviour. 

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II- McDougall’s The Induced Emotion Theory:

Supported by McDougall the ‘Induced Emotional
Theory’ of crowd holds that the behaviour of an
individual in a crowd is intensified than when he is
alone. Crowd members stimulate each other which
heightens and intensifies the responses of each
individual. Thus, emotion is induced in a crowd
situation which leads to all sorts of irresponsible
behaviour and indiscipline.

This theory have been supported by the “sympathetic

induction of emotion” concept advanced by
McDougall which suggests that the emotion of one
William McDougall
person makes another emotional and influences him.
When we find, the bride is crying at the time of
leaving her parents’ place, we start crying.
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An example of McDougall’s Theory

When you have gone to console your friend whose father has passed away,
you start crying seeing him crying. Likewise in a crowd situation the hot
slogans, fire brand lectures and the irrational behaviour make others present
emotional and encourage them to behave in an emotional manner.
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III- Allport’s Social Facilitation Theory:

With reference to the cause of crowd behaviour some argue

that the emotional behaviour of one individual contributes to
the emotional response of another but it did not induce it.
This also refers to the social facilitation theory or circular
reaction theory of crowd advanced by Allport.
Those who support this theory say that sometimes we laugh
in a crowd situation when others laugh not knowing the real
reasons. Thus, it is a response in a group created by a group.

However, it is viewed by Allport that the origin of crowd

response is not by crowd members and the stimulus situation
but it is the prepotent trend of the individual himself. But,
undoubtedly such behaviour is heightened by the crowd
Floyd Henry Allport
stimulus and its members. The heightening of emotions
make each person highly suggestible and set to imitate the
action of others.
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• Just like during war everyone feels that killing the enemy is
the right action, similarly in a mob or action crowd the active
members feel that their action is justified in the interest of the
organisation, public or nation.
• When people feel that the law and order authorities are not
doing their job in the right earnest, sometimes they are
compelled to take the law into their own hands and behave in
a manner which is irrational and indisciplined in the eyes of
law and society.

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IV- Jung and Martin’s Unconscious Induction Theory:

• Jung and Martin have tried to explain cause of crowd behaviour by
Freudian principle. Jung explained the unity and identically of crowd by
making a reference to the unconscious racial mind or collective
unconscious.

Carl Jung John Martin

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• Once our inhibitions are removed, suppressions and repressions come to

the forefront and the unconscious impulses like violence, irrationality,
aggressiveness, desire to kill and destroy get a chance for free operation
in a crowd situation. The unconscious, irrational, primitive impulse get
an upper hand and socialization becomes ineffective for the time being.
Miller and Dollard also support this view.
• The unconscious, antisocial and aggressive urges which under normal
situation do not get a chance to come up because of social restriction and
social values, come up in a crowd as the responsibility is less here.
Though, this theory is not very much different from the former theory,
Martin and others have emphasized the role of repression and conscious
desires in crowd behaviour.

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V- Freud’s Theory of Crowd Behaviour

• Freud suggests that what holds any group together is a
love relationship, i.e., emotional ties. This explains what
he considers to be ‘the principal phenomenon of group
psychology’. Using psycho-analytic approach of Freud,
E. D. Martin interpreted crowd behaviour as the release
for repressed drives.
• Through a crowd, the restraints of a superego are
relaxed and primitive ego-impulses come into play. The
‘censor’ within the individual is set aside in the crowd
and the ‘instinct’ or basic ‘id’ impulses, which are
normally confined to the inner depths of the personality,
come to surface. The crowd thus provides a momentary
Sigmund Freud release of otherwise repressed drives.

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Criticism of Freud’s Theory

• How far the Freudian theory is helpful in explaining crowd behaviour, it

is argued that it is not substantiated by factual observation. Sometimes,
the crowd behaviour may be the expression of repressed drives, but it
may not be true of all the crowds. Moreover, it is unable to explain all
the features of crowd behaviour.

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References
• An Introduction to Social Psychology – by WilliamMcdougall
• The Psychology of Revolution – By Gustav LeBon
• Psychologydiscussion.net
• Researchgate.net
• Shodhganga.inflibnet

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