Why you get hooked on that one festival

Every summer the festival season seems to increase in size, with new events and new attendees joining the annual shenanigans. For many of you, there will be that one special festival that you connect with and dedicate yourself to every year.

So many people attach themselves to one particular event and become lifelong followers. You all know someone who does this, or maybe you’re one of them. Here are a few reasons why you get hooked on that one festival…

SELF-EXPRESSION
Going to a festival facilitates and encourages your self-expression. In such a liberated environment you can start to truly embrace who you are. In light of such a personal experience, you can end up becoming attached to the festival in an intimate way.

EMOTIONAL CONNECTION
Festivals play host to a wide range of emotions, including the euphoria of peak experiences and the joy of bonding with your friend. This can create emotional attachment to the event itself, where you connect the festival to your positive memories.

SOCIAL COHESION
In a similar way to bands, festivals will attract their “tribes” and within these specific groups, strangers form bonds with one another and feel a sense of belonging. Being part of a social group appeals to the deeper aspects of our psyche, and can trigger strong connections to the events themselves.

THE POWER OF POSITIVE MEMORIES
Whether they’re rose-tinted or not, our memories hold a lot of power, especially the positive ones. When it comes to making decisions about which festivals to attend, good memories can entice us to go back again to try and relive that epic moment when the sun set over the mountains, or “DJ XYZ played the secret forest party”.

THEY BECOME PART OF YOUR IDENTITY
On the subject of forming tribes, festivals can become intertwined with your identity. Whether you’re a disciple of Glastonbury or hopelessly committed to Love International, festival-goers grow their identity and reflect the festival they love and keep going back every year.