The US Army FM 3.19-15 Civil Disturbance Operations provides a useful insight into crowd behaviour and dynamics, especially when agitated. While the army’s crown dispersal methods are definitely not recommended in the corporate context, the first part of the manual makes for very interesting reading:
“Understanding crowds and how individuals and groups form crowds through the gathering process is important because these issues apply to the dynamics of a crowd. Under most circumstances, gathered crowds are orderly and present little or no problems for authorities. Crowds consist of people who, although very motivated and passionate, are also subject to their own need for creature comforts. Rainy, cold, and nasty weather has a way of disheartening all but the few highly motivated and disciplined individuals. If problems exist, they usually fall into the following three categories:
Public disorder. Public disorder is a basic breach of civic order. Individuals or small groups assembling have a tendency to disrupt the normal flow of things around them.
Public disturbance. Public disturbance is designed to cause turmoil on top of the disruption. Individuals and groups assembling into a crowd begin chanting, yelling, singing, and voicing individual or collective opinions.
Riot. A riot is a disturbance that turns violent. Assembled crowds become a mob that violently expresses itself by destroying property, assaulting others, and creating an extremely volatile environment.
Being part of a crowd of people has certain effects on different people. Each individual in a crowd is susceptible to behaving in a way that is contrary to their normal behavior. Some reasons for these behaviors are as follows:
Crowds provide individuals with a sense of anonymity. With so many others, an individual realizes that he is just another face in the crowd, giving a sense of invulnerability.
Crowd and individual behaviors are impersonal by nature. The “them-against-us” attitude affords those within the crowd the ability to freely (without hesitation or reservation) be verbally abusive, throw objects, or attack anyone who gets in the way.
Crowds provide individuals with the idea that their moral responsibilities have shifted from themselves as a person to the crowd as a whole. Large numbers of people discourage individual behavior, and the urge to imitate others within the crowd is strong. Individuals look to others around them for cues of what to do next, disregarding their own background and training. Often, it is only the strong, well disciplined person who can resist the prevailing behavior of a crowd.
Crowd behavior influences the actions of both the disorderly individuals of the crowd and the authorities tasked to control them.”
To download a copy of this manual, click here http://fas.org/irp/doddir/army/fm3-19-15.pdf or email David.
