"It’s what I do that defines me": real life superheroes, identity, and vigilantism
Real Life Superheroes (RLSH) create unique superhero personas and engage in a variety of community-based activities, including street patrols with the stated purpose of responding to and deterring crime. Prior research on RLSH explored the psychological motivations for participating in the subcultur...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2022
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| In: |
Deviant behavior
Year: 2022, Volume: 43, Issue: 9, Pages: 1088-1102 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Summary: | Real Life Superheroes (RLSH) create unique superhero personas and engage in a variety of community-based activities, including street patrols with the stated purpose of responding to and deterring crime. Prior research on RLSH explored the psychological motivations for participating in the subculture, engaging concepts such as edgework and extreme altruism, while also avoiding framing RLSH as vigilantes. Most RLSH reject the vigilante label, even though the community recognizes vigilante traditions as a precursor to the contemporary movement and cites popular vigilante superheroes as influences. In this study, we apply a criminological conceptualization of vigilantism through an analysis of RLSH interviews and social media posts over a two-year period. Based on this framework, RLSH activity classifies as vigilantism despite declarations of community outreach and activism. We also identified themes of extreme altruism and communal narcissism in our data and provide observations about RLSH messaging during the pandemic. |
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| Item Description: | Literaturverzeichnis: Seite 1101-1102 |
| ISSN: | 1521-0456 |
| DOI: | 10.1080/01639625.2021.1953948 |