If this happens, go shopping
If the home team loses versus the point spread then domestic violence in that town goes up 8%.
Controlling for location and time fixed effects, weather factors, the pre-game point spread, and the size of the local viewing audience, we find that upset losses by the home team (losses in games that the home team was predicted to win by more than 3 points) lead to an 8 percent increase in police reports of at-home male-on-female intimate partner violence.
Contrasting… home team unexpected wins lower domestic violence by a small amount.
For the effect to be this pronounced there would have to be a very high correlation between football watchers and those prone to domestic violence.
Football watching might be something to watch for in prospective spouses ladies…
November 18th, 2009 at 7:41 pm
DV should be fairly low in Detroit, Oakland and St Louis.
November 18th, 2009 at 7:58 pm
I don’t know the years used. I suspect that losses in towns with formerly good teams, like Oakland and St. Louis could at fault. Teams like Cleveland and Detroit or Cincinnati that have been crappy forever must not have high expectations among abusers.
November 19th, 2009 at 10:25 am
Given that (American) football is a quite violent sport, it would not surprise me to hear a correlation with domestic violence.
Cleveland was a regular champion in the 1950s under Paul Brown. Only two losing seasons 1946-1973. Franchise moved to become Baltimore Ravens and then a new franchise established.
One of its prime contenders was Detroit. NFL Champions 1952-53-57
Cincinnati was in the Super Bowl around 1982. Its record: 2000s Decade Record: 58-85-1; 1990s Decade Record: 52-108-0; 1980s Decade Record: 81-71-0; 1970s
Decade Record: 74-70-0
Forever is a long time; personal memories are much shorter.
November 19th, 2009 at 10:30 am
Forever in football is maybe a decade.