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64-473: A neophyte is a recent initiate or convert to a subject or belief. Neophyte may also refer to: Initiation William Ian Miller notes the role of ritual humiliation in comic ordering and testing. Mircea Eliade discussed initiation as a principal religious act by classical or traditional societies. He defined initiation as "a basic change in existential condition", which liberates man from profane time and history. "Initiation recapitulates

128-708: A paramilitary tradition, or sub-units of police forces such as tactical teams, may also have hazing rituals. Rescue services, such as lifeguards or air-sea rescue teams may have hazing rituals. In Belgium, hazing rituals are a common practice in student clubs (fraternities and sororities, called studentenclubs in Dutch and cercles étudiants in French) and student societies (called studentenverenigingen , studentenkringen or faculteitskringen in Dutch and associations étudiantes or associations facultaires in French). The latter are typically attached to

192-405: A closed 'family' which absorbs in members, who are often formally accepted, generally after a form of trial or hazing . In addition, there can be similar rites of passages associated with parts of naval and military life, which do not constitute true initiations as the participants are already and remain members of the same community. One such rite is associated with crossing the equator on board

256-454: A combination of both, such as in the Finnish mopokaste (literally 'moped baptism') . In Latvian , the word iesvētības , which means 'in-blessings', is used, also standing for religious rites of passage, especially confirmation . In Swedish , the term used is nollning , literally 'zeroing', as the freshmen hazees still are 'zeroes' before attending their first year. In Portugal,

320-532: A desire to set up a lasting dominance hierarchy. Newcomers also gain a far more egalitarian standing after hazing ends, showing that the dynamics that occur during hazing are "profoundly exaggerated relative to the actual social hierarchy". The theory of hazing as a selection mechanism posits that hazing seeks to eliminate prospective members who are not sufficiently committed to a group or who would otherwise be free riders. Anthropologist Aldo Cimino notes that hazing ordeals can sometimes provide information about

384-515: A few sororities have signed the charter, as well as all student societies. In April 2019, the 28 remaining fraternities in Leuven signed the charter. In the Netherlands, the so-called 'traditional fraternities' have an introduction time which includes hazing rituals. The pledges go for a few days to a camp during which they undergo hazing rituals but are meanwhile introduced to the traditions of

448-507: A form of initiation, also known as "sex in", though they may also be "jumped-in" like their male counterparts. One study shows that female members who were "sexed-in" as part of gang initiation were thereafter viewed with lower respect than those that were "jumped-in", even when promised they would become full-fledged members. Another study found that sexed-in members face greater risks of sexual exploitation and abuse by fellow male members. Tribes often have initiations. The initiation done in

512-473: A group that humiliates, degrades, abuses, or endangers them regardless of a person's willingness to participate. Hazing is seen in many different types of social groups, including gangs , sports teams , schools , cliques , universities , law enforcement , military units , prisons , fraternities and sororities , and even workplaces in some cases . The initiation rites can range from relatively benign pranks to protracted patterns of behavior that rise to

576-828: A group. Laboratory-based recreations of hazing may be limited in informativeness because they are only able to impose brief unpleasant experiences whose severity is limited by ethical restrictions on laboratory research. Real-world hazing may last months; may be far more severe; and may involve a confluence of different feelings, in contrast to the relatively simple distress induced in laboratory experiments. Researcher Aldo Cimino also points out that laboratory groups are "ephemeral", whereas real-world organizations that engage in hazing are "serious and enduring coalitions". Surveys and studies examining real-world hazing have also yielded inconclusive results about its impacts on group solidarity. A 2022 study of new members of an American social fraternity that engaged in hazing found that hazing

640-566: A hard time of being extinguished by those who saw it to be potentially dangerous like administration in education or law enforcement. A 2014 paper by Harvey Whitehouse discusses theories that hazing can cause social cohesion though group identification and identity fusion . A 2017 study published in Scientific Reports found that groups that share painful or strong negative experiences can cause visceral bonding and pro-group behavior. Another theory that seeks to explain hazing

704-400: A hazing charter in 2013 following an animal cruelty incident in the hazing ritual of student club Reuzegom . The charter was to be signed by student societies, fraternities, and sororities. Signing the charter would have been a pledge to notify the city of the place and time of the hazing ceremony, and to abstain from violence, racism, extortion, bullying, sexual assault, discrimination, and

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768-492: A house, (prestigious) sub-structure, or commission for which they undergo a second (and usually heavier) hazing ritual. Incidents mostly occur during hazing rituals for these sub-structures, since there is less or no control from the fraternity board. Also, these sub-structure hazing rituals involve often excessive alcohol abuse, even when alcohol has become a taboo in the hazing of the fraternity itself. Other situations causing additional risks for incidents are members (often joining

832-440: A long distance (i.e. hallways) with matches. Less loaded names for hazing are otrzęsiny (related to the verb otrząsać 'get over, rally' but also 'shake off/out'—as being a novice is a negative state that should be quit) and chrzciny mentioned above. Hazings are sometimes concentrated in a single session, which may be called a hell night , prolonged to a hell week , or over a long period, resembling fagging . In

896-627: A long history in the Philippines , and has been a source of public controversy after many cases that resulted in the death of the neophyte. The first recorded death due to hazing in the Philippines was recorded in 1954, with the death of Gonzalo Mariano Albert. Hazing was regulated under the Anti-Hazing Act of 1995 , after the death of Leonardo Villa in 1991, but many cases, usually causing severe injury or death, continued even after it

960-417: A mock version using some glue) or branding . Submission to senior members of the group is common. Abject "etiquette" required of pledges or subordinates may include prostration, kneeling, literal groveling, and kissing body parts. Other physical feats may be required, such as calisthenics and other physical tests, such as mud wrestling , forming a human pyramid , or climbing a greased pole. Exposure to

1024-544: A naval ship, but it can even be taken by passengers on board a cruise liner , who are not and do not become members of anything but the so-called "equator crossing club". Another form, "Kissing the Royal Belly" or "Royal Baby", calls for initiates to kneel before a senior member of the crew, who wears a mock diaper. This "Baby" usually has a huge stomach covered with greasy materials ranging from cooking oil to mustard, shaving cream, eggs, and oysters. Junior sailors must lick

1088-461: A pilot's first solo flight , they are often drenched with water, as well as having the back of their shirt cut off to celebrate the achievement. Cutting off the back of the shirt originates from the days of tandem trainers, where the instructor sat behind the students and tugged on the back of their shirts to get their attention. Cutting off the back of the shirt symbolizes that the instructor does not need to do that anymore. On their first crossing

1152-795: A religious theme or etymology are preferred, such as baptism or purgatory (e.g. baptême in Belgian French, doop in Belgian Dutch, chrzest in Polish) or variations on a theme of naïveté and the rite of passage such as a derivation from a term for freshman, for example bizutage in European French, ontgroening ('de- green[horn]ing ') in Dutch and Afrikaans (South Africa and Namibia), novatada in Spanish, from novato , meaning newcomer or rookie or

1216-474: A shepherding process where those who are at a higher level guide the initiate through a process of greater exposure of knowledge. This may include the revelation of secrets, hence the term secret society for such organizations, usually reserved for those at the higher level of understanding. One famous historical example is the Eleusinian Mysteries of ancient Greece, thought to go back to at least

1280-494: Is an evolutionarily -acquired behavior that specifically seeks to protect groups from the exploitation of "automatic benefits"—benefits that are automatically gained by being a member of the group—by newcomers. In the United States, universities and hazing-prevention organizations have published messages directed at students that seek to deter students from engaging in hazing activities. This includes messaging focused on

1344-462: Is given an impossible task. Examples of snipe hunts include being sent to find a tin of Tartan paint, or a "dough repair kit" in a bakery, While in the early 1900s, rookies in the Canadian military were ordered to obtain a "brass magnet" when brass is not magnetic . Spanking is done mainly in the form of paddling among fraternities, sororities, and similar clubs. This practice is also used in

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1408-446: Is occurring, initiation is not taken so seriously as before, although there are still certain areas which still perform initiations. In some African tribes, boys take about 3–4 months participating in initiation rites and girls take about 1–2 months. Australian Aboriginal tribes usually had long periods of time to help prepare adolescent boys, teaching them traditional lore before they were ready to attend large elaborate ceremonies at

1472-411: Is that hazing activities allow senior members to exercise dominance and establish power over newer members. Anthropologist Aldo Cimino notes that some elements of hazing are not fully consistent with the theory that it is a pure display of dominance. Hazing occurs in a "ceremonial or ritualistic" context that creates a distinction between hazing activities and everyday life, which is inconsistent with

1536-514: Is then thought to produce feelings of strong group attraction among initiates after the experience, because they want to justify the effort used. Rewards during initiations have important consequences in that initiates who feel more rewarded express stronger group identity. As well as group attraction, initiations can also produce conformity among new members. Psychology experiments have also shown that initiations increase feelings of affiliation . A spiritual initiation rite normally implies

1600-459: The Bapedi tribe of South Africa is normally regarded as a stage where a boy is to be taught manhood and a girl to be taught womanhood. In many African tribes, initiation involves circumcision / genital mutilation of males and sometimes circumcision / genital mutilation of females as well. Initiation is considered necessary for the individual to be regarded as a full member of the tribe. Otherwise,

1664-615: The Guru and also implies that the Chela (student or disciple) agrees to the requirements (such as living an ethical lifestyle, meditating, etc.) One of the most recognized religious initiation rites is Baptism within Christianity . Christian Baptism is seen as both part of the individual's faith and conversion as well as their initiation into the Church. In unionised organizations ,

1728-508: The Italian military, the term used was nonnismo , from nonno (literally 'grandfather'), a jargon term used for the soldiers who had already served for most of their draft period. A similar equivalent term exists in the Russian military , where a hazing phenomenon known as dedovshchina ( дедовщи́на ) exists, meaning roughly 'grandfather' or the slang term 'gramps' (referring to

1792-496: The Mycenaean period or " Bronze Age ". In the context of ritual magic and esotericism , an initiation is considered to cause a fundamental process of change to begin within the person being initiated and its "evolution operates within both the material world and the spiritual world". The person conducting the initiation (the initiator ), being in possession of a certain power or state of being, transfers this power or state to

1856-565: The Urapmin people used to practice a type of male initiation known in Urap as ban . These elaborate rituals were a central part of Urapmin social life. The ban was a multistage process which involved beatings and manipulation of various objects. At each stage, the initiate was offered revelations of secret knowledge (Urap: weng awem ), but at the next stage these would be shown to be false (Urap: famoul ). These initiations were abandoned with

1920-455: The "initiation" is typically no more than a brief familiarization with basic procedures and the provision of a copy of the appropriate collective bargaining agreement that governs the work performed by members of the union. Some unions also charge a one-time initiation fee, after which the joining person is officially deemed to be a member in good standing. Some communities on board a military vessel and also of military soldiers tend to form

1984-480: The 1959 study by Aronson and Mills, Psychologist Robert Cialdini uses the framework of consistency and commitment to explain the phenomenon of hazing and the vigor and zeal to which practitioners of hazing persist in and defend these activities even when they are made illegal. The 1959 study shaped the development of cognitive dissonance theory by Leon Festinger . Many people view hazing as an effective way to teach respect and develop discipline and loyalty within

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2048-616: The Baby's navel area, while the "baby" grabs and shakes their head to better smear the goo onto their faces. Gangs often require new members to commit crimes before accepting them as part of the gang. New members may be physically beaten by fellow gang members to demonstrate their courage, also known as "beat-in" or "jump-in", which occasionally results in a fatality. One study indicates that young people are more likely to be hurt in gang initiation than they are by refusing to join. Female members may be required to have sex with male members as

2112-412: The activity. 90% of students who experienced behavior the researchers defined as hazing did not consider themselves to have been hazed, and 95% of those who experienced what they defined as hazing did not report it. The most common hazing-related activities reported in student groups included alcohol consumption, humiliation, isolation, sleep deprivation, and sex acts. Police forces, especially those with

2176-496: The adoption of Christianity, and the Urap have expressed relief at no longer having to administer the beatings which were involved. The Sateré-Mawé people of Brazil use intentional bullet ant stings as part of their initiation rites to become warriors. Among the various Austronesian peoples , head-hunting raids were strongly tied to the practice of tattooing . In head-hunting societies, tattoos were records of how many heads

2240-413: The apprentice's penis and testicles , a color made by mixing black printers ink and dark blue printers ink, which takes a long time to wash off. Similarly, mechanics get their groins smeared with old dirty grease. One theory that has been proposed to explain hazing behaviors is that it increases solidarity among a group's inductees, between the inductees and existing members, or between new members and

2304-544: The ceremonies involved. Nearing the late parts of the ceremony, the initiate gains an alias, or a " Courtesy name "; thereafter use of their personal name is strictly prohibited except before parents and rulers. [REDACTED] Media related to Initiation at Wikimedia Commons Hazing Hazing ( US English ), initiation , beasting ( British English ), bastardisation ( Australian English ), ragging ( South Asian English ) or deposition refers to any activity expected of someone in joining or participating in

2368-630: The decks or cleaning the toilets with a toothbrush. In fraternities, pledges often must clean up a mess intentionally made by brothers which can include fecal matter, urine, and dead animals. Servitude such as waiting on others (as at fraternity parties) or various other forms of housework may be involved, often with tests of obedience. In some cases, the hazee may be made to eat raw eggs, peppers, hot sauce, or drink too much alcohol. Some hazing even includes eating or drinking vile things such as bugs or rotting food. The hazee may have to wear an imposed piece of clothing, outfit, item, or something else worn by

2432-509: The degree to which a prospective member values a group by demonstrating the costs that they are willing to endure. Cimino also notes, however, those common elements of hazing, such as disorientation and intimidation, may cause people to endure hazing rituals regardless of how much they value a group, and that hazing occurs even in situations in which less committed inductees are not free to leave, suggesting that selection may not fully explain hazing activities. Aldo Cimino proposes that hazing

2496-543: The effects of hazing activities of differing severities. According to one of the largest US National Surveys regarding hazing including over 60,000 student-athletes from 2,400 colleges and universities: Over 325,000 athletes at more than 1,000 National Collegiate Athletic Association schools in the US participated in intercollegiate sports during 1998–99. Of these athletes: The survey found that 79% of college athletes experienced some form of hazing to join their team, yet 60% of

2560-432: The elements may be required, such as swimming or diving in cold water or snow. Orientation tests may be held, such as abandoning pledges without transport. Dares include jumping from some height, stealing from police or rival teams, and obedience. Blood pinning among military aviators (and many other elite groups) to celebrate becoming new pilots is done by piercing their chests with the sharp pins of aviator wings. On

2624-429: The equator in military and commercial navigation, each "pollywog" is subjected to a series of tests usually including running or crawling a gauntlet of abuse and various scenes supposedly situated at King Neptune's court. A pledge auction is a variation on the slave auction , where people bid on the paraded pledges. Hazing also occurs for apprentices in some trades. In printing, it consists of applying bronze blue to

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2688-435: The faculty of the university, while the first ones are privately operated by hazing committees (Dutch: doopcommissies , French: comités de baptême ), which are usually led by older students who have previously been hazed themselves. Hazing rituals in student societies have generally been safer than those in student clubs, precisely because they are to some extent regulated by universities. For example, KU Leuven drew up

2752-483: The fraternity itself (the lightest cases), and via the criminal justice system as assault or in case of death negligent homicide or manslaughter . Universities as a rule support student unions (financially and by granting board members of such unions a discount on the required number of ECTS credits) but can in the most extreme case suspend or withdraw recognition and support for such unions. According to R. Dayao, hazing, usually in initiation rites of fraternities, has

2816-478: The fraternity. After camp, there are usually evenings or whole days in which the pledges have to be present at the fraternity, although slowly the pressure is released and the relations become somewhat more equal. Often, pledges collect or perform chores to raise funds for charity. At the end of the hazing period, the inauguration of the new members takes place. Incidents have occurred resulting in injuries and death. Often these incidents occur when members wish to join

2880-516: The group and believe that hazing is a necessary component of initiation rites. Hazing can be used as a way to engender conformity within a social group, something that can be seen in many sociological studies. Moreover, initiation rituals when managed effectively can serve to build team cohesion and improve team performance, while negative and detrimental forms of hazing alienate and disparage individuals. Dissonance can produce feelings of group attraction or social identity among initiates after

2944-422: The group as a whole. Attempts at replicating hazing in laboratory studies have yielded inconclusive results concerning group solidarity. A 1959 study by Aronson and Mills found that students made to read embarrassing material to join a discussion group reported liking the group more. On the other hand, a 1991 experiment by Hautaluoma et al. found that severe initiations could sometimes lead to lower liking for

3008-467: The hazing camp but not designated with any responsibility) separating pledges and taking them away from the main group to 'amuse themselves' with them. In 1965, a student at Utrecht University choked to death during a hazing ritual ( Roetkapaffaire ). There was public outrage when the perpetrators were convicted to light conditional sentences while left-wing Provo demonstrators were given unconditional prison sentences for order disturbances. The fact that

3072-419: The hazing experience because they want to justify the effort used. Rewards during initiations or hazing rituals matter in that initiates who feel more rewarded express a stronger group identity. As well as increasing group attraction, hazing can produce conformity among new members. Hazing could also increase feelings of affiliation because of the stressful nature of the hazing experience. Also, hazing has

3136-399: The individual may not be allowed to participate in ceremonies or even in social rituals such as marriage. A man will not be allowed to marry or have any special relationship with a woman who did not go to an initiation, because she is not considered to be a woman. Initiation may be thought of as an event which may help teens prepare themselves to be good husbands and wives. Where modernization

3200-715: The level of abuse or criminal misconduct. Hazing is often prohibited by law or institutions such as colleges and universities because it may include either physical or psychological abuse , such as humiliation , nudity , or sexual abuse . Hazing activities have sometimes caused injuries or deaths. While one explanation for hazing is that it increases group cohesion or solidarity , laboratory and observational evidence on its impacts on solidarity are inconclusive. Other explanations include displaying dominance , eliminating less committed members, and protecting groups that provide large automatic benefits for membership from exploitation by new members. In some languages, terms with

3264-452: The magistrates handling the case were all alumni of the same fraternity gave rise to accusations of nepotism and class justice. Two incidents in 1997, leading to one heavy injury and one death, led to sharpened scrutiny over hazing. Hazing incidents have nevertheless occurred since, but justice is becoming keener in persecuting perpetrators. The Netherlands has no anti-hazing legislation. Hazing incidents can be handled by internal resolution by

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3328-450: The military. The hazee may be humiliated by being hosed or by sprinklers or buckets; covered with dirt or with (sometimes rotten) food, or even urinated upon. Olive or baby oil may be used to "show off" the bare skin, for wrestling, or just for slipperiness (e.g. to complicate pole climbing). Cleaning may be limited to a dive into the water, hosing down, or even paddling the worst off. They may have to do tedious cleaning including swabbing

3392-524: The person being initiated. Thus the concept of initiation is similar to that of apostolic succession . The initiation process is often likened to a simultaneous death and rebirth, because as well as being a beginning it also implies an ending as existence on one level drops away in an ascension to the next. Initiation is a key component of Judaism , Sufism and Shiism , Vaishnavism , Sant Mat , Surat Shabd Yoga , Vajrayana Buddhism , Wicca , and similar religious gnostic traditions. It denotes acceptance by

3456-401: The potential harms of hazing, the ineffectiveness of hazing for group bonding, and social norms statistics that show large majorities in opposition to hazing. Hazing researcher Aldo Cimino has noted that the anti-hazing messaging released by institutions is sometimes inaccurate and that the ambiguous state of current research on hazing makes it difficult to accurately make strong claims about

3520-583: The sacred history of the world. And through this recapitulation, the whole world is sanctified anew... [the initiand] can perceive the world as a sacred work, a creation of the Gods." Eliade differentiates between types of initiations in two ways: types and functions. These can be broken into two types: In the study of certain social forms of initiation, such as hazing in college fraternities and sororities, laboratory experiments in psychology suggest that severe initiations produce cognitive dissonance . Dissonance

3584-427: The senior corps of soldiers in their final year of conscription ). One way of initiating a new member into a street gang is for multiple other members of the gang to assault the new member with a beating. Hazing activities can involve forms of ridicule and humiliation within the group or in public, while other hazing incidents are akin to pranks. A snipe hunt is such a prank, when a newcomer or credulous person

3648-439: The student-athlete respondents indicated that they would not report incidents of hazing. A 2007 survey at American colleges found that 55% of students in "clubs, teams, and organizations" experienced behavior the survey defined as hazing, including in varsity athletics and Greek-letter organizations . This survey found that 47% of respondents experienced hazing before college, and in 25% of hazing cases, school staff were aware of

3712-522: The term praxe , which means 'practice' or 'habit', is used for initiation. At education establishments in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, this practice involves existing students baiting new students and is called ragging . In Polish schools, hazing is known as kocenie (literally 'catting', coming from the noun kot cat) . It often features cat-related activities, like competitive milk-drinking . Other popular tasks include measuring

3776-520: The time of initiation when they were finally recognized as full-fledged men in their society. Most tribes had circumcision and scarification as part of the male initiation rituals, while many Central Australian tribes also practiced subincision . A salient shared cultural feature of the Min peoples of the New Guinea Highlands is initiation into a secret male religious cult. For example,

3840-561: The use of vertebrate animals. Reuzegom, as well as the other fraternities and sororities of the Antwerp Guild, refused. In 2018, twenty-year-old student Sanda Dia died from multiple organ failure in the Reuzegom hazing ritual as a result of abuse by fellow Reuzegom members. The killing of a black student in a mostly-white fraternity, some of whose members are alleged to have engaged in racist behaviour, led to controversy. As of 2019 ,

3904-460: The victim in a way that would bring negative attention to the wearer. Examples include a uniform (e.g. toga ); a leash or collar (also associated with bondage ); infantile and other humiliating dress and attire. Markings may also be made on clothing or bare skin. They are painted, written, tattooed, or shaved on, sometimes collectively forming a message (one letter, syllable, or word on each pledge) or may receive tarring and feathering (or rather

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3968-534: The warriors had taken in battle, and was part of the initiation rites into adulthood. The Sande society in West Africa initiates girls into adulthood by rituals including female genital mutilation . Chinese boys, under the Rites of Zhou , initiate their adulthood when they are 20 years old (加冠) and girls when they are 15 (及笄). Yili (儀禮), a text in the chapter of the rites(?) (士冠禮) describes various details of

4032-502: Was "not substantially related to feelings of solidarity". A 2016 survey of members of sororities and fraternities in the Netherlands found that mentally severe, but not physically severe, initiation rituals were linked to lower affiliation with fellow inductees and that this relationship was explained by the humiliation experienced by inductees. A 2007 survey of student-athletes conducted by Van Raalte et al. found that hazing

4096-488: Was associated with lower task cohesion and had no apparent relation to social cohesion; by contrast, appropriate team building activities had a positive impact on social cohesion but had little impact on task cohesion. The study, which included activities like "tattooing" and "engaging in or simulating sex acts" as "acceptable team building" activities because respondents categorized them as appropriate, has been criticized for using an improper definition for hazing. Citing

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