Male Team Sport Hazing Initiations in a Culture of Decreasing Homohysteria

In this longitudinal ethnographic research, we report on seven years of hazing rituals on two separate men’s sports teams at one university in the UK. Using 38 in-depth interviews alongside naturalistic observations of the initiation rituals, we argue that acts of hazing have changed in purpose, behavior and meaning; and that this corresponds with a decrease in homohysteria (the fear men maintain of being homosexualized). Results indicate that with the decline of homohysteria, hazing rituals involving same-sex sexual behaviors maintain less saliency and are therefore less frequently used by athletes. Instead, we find that the most recent hazing initiations are dominated by binge drinking. While documenting decreasing homohysteria alongside increased alcohol consumption, we argue that the primary purpose of these initiation ceremonies is not to transmit a particular subcultural ethos of a homophobic masculinity but rather act as a rite of passage into the developmental stage, emerging adulthood.