Bracketology and the Numinous
The Madness that characterizes the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament is well known by even the most casual sports spectator. Inherent to the tournament is the ritual that occurs before it begins, the filling out of brackets by individuals who attempt to do the impossible, to accurately predict its outcome. Such a ritual is known by many as "bracketology."
For many, bracketology has a supernatural element to it. Some use rituals and their own methods to predict how the events of the tournament will unfold. The bracket itself takes on its own identity as a medium through which the tournament is played out. These aspects of bracketology give it a numinous quality.
The focus of this website is to investigate the effect that bracketology has on how people watch the tournament. The research question that is asked is: "Does bracketology make the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament more appealing to viewers?" Ethnographic research, interviews, and periodicals are the main sources of information used to answer the research question.
This website begins with an examination of the history of bracketology, from its humble beginnings to its now ubiquitous presence in the sports world. The next section focuses on the rituals used by individuals when filling out their brackets and possible trends that occur in an attempt to accurately predict the tournament's outcome. Finally, the importance of marginal play in bracketology is investigated, namely how an observer can become emotionally investigated in a game.
For many, bracketology has a supernatural element to it. Some use rituals and their own methods to predict how the events of the tournament will unfold. The bracket itself takes on its own identity as a medium through which the tournament is played out. These aspects of bracketology give it a numinous quality.
The focus of this website is to investigate the effect that bracketology has on how people watch the tournament. The research question that is asked is: "Does bracketology make the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament more appealing to viewers?" Ethnographic research, interviews, and periodicals are the main sources of information used to answer the research question.
This website begins with an examination of the history of bracketology, from its humble beginnings to its now ubiquitous presence in the sports world. The next section focuses on the rituals used by individuals when filling out their brackets and possible trends that occur in an attempt to accurately predict the tournament's outcome. Finally, the importance of marginal play in bracketology is investigated, namely how an observer can become emotionally investigated in a game.
