Aggression in Mixed Martial Arts: An Analysis of the Likelihood of Winning a Decision

Collier, Trevor; Johnson, Andrew L.; Ruggiero, John

doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-6630-8_7

Cited by 13 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Assessing many dimensions quickly can be facilitated through the use of a summary representation that acts as a running tally across variables. In hand-to-hand human combat, physical size and strength -dimensions that are robustly correlated -are important determinants of fighting capacity (although the relative importance of each varies somewhat between studies --see Von Rueden et al, 2008;Collier et al, 2012;Sell et al, 2012). Correspondingly, we can expect that one phylogenetically ancient cognitive capacity is the ability to represent relative size and strength in the context of agonistic decision-making.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synchronized behavior increases assessments of the formidability and cohesion of coalitions

Fessler

Holbrook

2016

Evolution and Human Behavior

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Synchronized behavior is a common feature of martial drills and military parades in many societies. Hagen and colleagues Hagen & Hammerstein, 2009) hypothesized that the intentional enactment of synchronized behavior evolved as a means of signaling coalitional strength, as individuals who can synchronize are able to act in concert in agonistic contexts. Previous research has explored either the subjective consequences of synchrony for participants in synchronized behaviors or the effect of synchrony on observers' impressions of rapport among the synchronized actors. Critically, left untested is the central tenet that, by communicating that the individuals constitute a coordinated unit, synchronized behaviors signal elevated fighting capacity. We tested this prediction in two studies by asking large U.S. samples to judge the envisioned physical formidability -previously demonstrated to summarize assessments of diverse determinants of fighting capacity -of U.S. soldiers or terrorists on the basis of audio tracks of either synchronous or asynchronous footsteps.Consonant with the agonistic signaling hypothesis, participants judged the synchronized target individuals to be larger and more muscular than the unsynchronized individuals, an effect mediated by their assessment that the former collectively constitute a single unified entity.Although synchronized footsteps also enhanced listeners' perceptions of social bonding among the target individuals, this assessment did not mediate their judgments of elevated formidability, suggesting that synchrony primarily signals fighting capacity via revealed entitativity rather than inferred motivation.Keywords: synchrony; signaling; fighting capacity; entitativity; perceived coalitional quality 2 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Synchronized behavior: theory and prior research. Across widely diverse cultures, and among societies of very different scales, synchronized behavior is a prominent feature of rituals and collective displays. Over the last two decades a growing literature has explored the psychological effects of synchronized movement and synchronized sound production (reviewed in Keller et al., 2014). At an elementary level, the effects of synchrony can be dichotomized into two classes, namely the impact that synchrony has on participants in such activities, and the impact that it has on observers. In a seminal book, McNeill (1995) proposed that synchronized movement enhances social bonding among participants, and that, over the course of human history, this process has played a pivotal role in the rise of cooperation.Pushing the roots of synchrony even farther back in time, Hagen and colleagues Hagen & Hammerstein, 2009) argued that music and dance derive from phylogenetically ancient coordinated territorial defense signals; in humans, these signals were refined to communicate the size, cohesiveness, and capabilities of coalitions, as intentionally enacted synchronized behavior inherently requires both the ability and the motivation to effectively coordinate actions. In b...

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synchronized behavior increases assessments of the formidability and cohesion of coalitions

Fessler

Holbrook

2016

Evolution and Human Behavior

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“…Such modification is particularly likely to occur when the core features of the ancestral system remain relevant in the derived context. This is true with regard to both size and strength in humans: Mixed martial arts competitions reveal that height is a factor in human fighting ability (Collier et al, 2012), and observers perceive a man′s height as contributing in this regard (Sell et al, 2009a). Likewise, relative size is an important consideration when deciding whether to escalate confrontations (Archer & Benson, 2008), and, consonant with a lower vulnerability to assault, taller men are less sensitive to cues of dominance than are shorter men (Watkins et al, 2010).…”

Section: The Dimensions Of Representations Of Potential Foesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assets at Risk: Menstrual Cycle Variation in the Envisioned Formidability of a Potential Sexual Assailant Reveals a Component of Threat Assessment

Fessler

Holbrook

Fleischman

2014

Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology

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Situations of potential agonistic conflict demand rapid and effective decision-making. The process of threat assessment includes assessments of relative fighting capacity, assessments of the likelihood of attack, and assessments of the extent to which one′s assets are at risk. The dimensions of physical size and strength appear to serve as key parameters in a cognitive representation summarizing multiple constituents of threat assessment. Here, we examine the thesis that this same representation summarizes asset risk. The fitness costs of sexual assault are in part a function of conception risk, as pregnancy due to assault compromises female choice and imperils existing and subsequent male investment. Prior research indicates that women′s attitudes and behaviors vary systematically across the menstrual cycle in a manner that would have reduced the likelihood of sexual assault during periods of greatest fertility in ancestral women. If the envisioned size and strength of a potential antagonist is used to represent asset risk, and if the threat that sexual assault poses to a woman′s reproductive assets is in part a product of her fertility, then the conceptualized size and strength of a potential sexual assailant should be a function of conception risk. We find support for this prediction in a large sample of naturally-cycling women in urban Southern California, indicating that asset risk is summarized using the same representation as relative fighting capacity and likelihood of attack. Presumably, this elegant use of a single representation for multiple aspects of threat assessment facilitates rapid decisionmaking in agonistic contexts.

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“…In mixed martial arts (MMA), much of the literature has examined the determinants of pay-per-view (PPV) demand or event attendance (Tainsky et al 2012;Watanabe 2012;Tainsky et al 2013;Watanabe 2015;Reams and Shapiro 2017), while Collier et al (2012) and Gift (2018) analyzed MMA judges with Gift finding that judges tend to show favoritism towards larger betting favorites, those with insurmountable leads, and the fighter who won the previous round. Finally, in boxing, where fighter compensation is contracted in advance and performance and win bonuses are not utilized, Tenorio (2000) found suggestive evidence, through examination of successful title defenses, to argue for a moral hazard in effort exertion.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Performance Bonuses and Effort: Evidence from Fight Night Awards in Mixed Martial Arts

Gift¹

2019

IJFS

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This paper investigates the role of fight night bonus awards on fighter behavior in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and World Extreme Cage (WEC) fighting mixed martial arts (MMA) promotions. Behavior is analyzed using detailed fighter performance statistics, exploiting variation in bonus size across events and over time. Findings suggest that fighters are not meaningfully influenced by bonus levels within the range observed in the sample period and possible explanations are discussed. Fight night bonuses appear to serve as a lottery compensation mechanism to ex post reward performances consistent with an MMA promotion’s desires rather than ex ante incentivize such performances. Findings have implications for strategic MMA promoter decisions and contribute more broadly to the personnel economics literature on incentives and compensation.

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Aggression in Mixed Martial Arts: An Analysis of the Likelihood of Winning a Decision

Cited by 13 publications

References 11 publications

Synchronized behavior increases assessments of the formidability and cohesion of coalitions

Synchronized behavior increases assessments of the formidability and cohesion of coalitions

Assets at Risk: Menstrual Cycle Variation in the Envisioned Formidability of a Potential Sexual Assailant Reveals a Component of Threat Assessment

Performance Bonuses and Effort: Evidence from Fight Night Awards in Mixed Martial Arts

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