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The authors examined the effects of distancing tactics on self-esteem and emotions, following a win or loss of one's favorite team. They measured state self-esteem and emotional responses of basketball fans as they exited the sport arena after their team had won or lost an official game. Half of the fans were given the opportunity to increase or decrease their association with the team before the measures of self-esteem and emotions; the remaining fans were given the opportunity after the measures. The fans tended to associate more with the team after team success than after team failure. In addition, self-esteem and positive emotions were higher, and negative emotions lower, when measured after, rather than before, the opportunity to increase or decrease association with the team. Those effects were more pronounced among high-team-identification fans than among low-team-identification fans. The results suggest a distinction between the short- and long-term effects of game outcome on the willingness to associate with one's team. In the short term, willingness to associate with the team may oscillate in accordance with team performance, even among high-team-identification fans; in the long term, only high-team-identification fans may maintain their allegiance to the team.

The authors examined whether discrepancies related to the group-based aspects of the self are differentially associated with distinct group-based emotional distress. Perceived actual, ideal, and ought attributes; group-based dejection and agitation-related emotions; and collective self-esteem and fear of negative evaluation of Israelis were assessed among 118 native Israelis. The actual-ideal group discrepancy was uniquely related to dejection-related emotions and to private collective self-esteem (CSE). In contrast, the actual-ought group discrepancy was uniquely linked to agitation-related emotions and to fear of negative Israeli evaluation. Furthermore, the actual-ought discrepancy association with fear of negative group evaluation was present only among low identifiers. Overall, the findings suggest the applicability of self-discrepancy theory in explaining emotional distress resulting from group membership.

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