Mass hysteria

All forms of this shared consciousness seem to be manifestations of the prevailing sociopsychosis. There may be a great upsurge of enthusiasm, fear, panic or other emotion which, rather than affecting everyone at once, seems to start on a small scale and spread rapidly to all in the vicinity, engulfing large numbers of people in highly charged emotion. Individuals seem deprived of their senses, behave and speak irrationally and manifest symptoms resembling those of possession; even those simply intending to watch what is happening may be caught up. Mass hysteria has manifested itself in religious wars, witch hunting and flagellation. In more secular terms, it is demonstrated at "pop" festivals, and football matches.