Hobby Hunters on the Psychological Swing

Hobby Hunters Rate Themselves as More Aggressive

The hypothesis was primarily confirmed that hobby hunters clearly rate themselves as more aggressive than non-hunters.

It can therefore be assumed that hobby hunters struggle to cope with the diminished opportunities for personal development in our time and attempt to sublimate the resulting tensions and aggression using such drastic methods. According to Fromm (1971), the sum of destructive tendencies is in direct proportion to the restriction of opportunities for expansive behaviour.

From a behaviourist standpoint, it is likely that hobby hunters experience recreational hunting and thus aggressive behaviours positively in the course of their socialisation. Through the pleasure derived from the kill and the recognition and respect of like-minded peers, aggressive behaviour is experienced as pleasurable.

Passion for Hunting as a Manifestation of Aggressive Behavioural Tendencies

43.4% of hobby hunters state that they engage in recreational hunting for traditional reasons, and 56.12% regard this reason as at least an important argument in its favour.

Hobby hunters and non-hunters do not differ in their connection to nature. This contradicts the arguments put forward by hobby hunters and general expectations.

In summary, these observations support the assumption that a high tendency towards aggressive behaviour is the motive for engaging in recreational hunting, and that hobby hunters, through their internal attribution, increasingly believe they are able to intervene in natural processes and wish to manipulate them.

Attempts to Characterise Hobby Hunters

The popularity of recreational hunting increases exclusively and highly significantly with passion for hunting, while interest in wildlife management and enjoyment of nature as reasons for hunting bear no relation to the popularity of recreational hunting. With increasing aggressiveness, passion for hunting increases.

44.15% of all hobby hunters state that they would under certain circumstances be prepared to inflict wildlife severe Pain to inflict, and 32.8% of all hobby hunters report having shot more than 20 animals in the last three years.

Trophies as symbols of victory

93% of hobby hunters report having trophies hanging at home. Trophies are the weapons of wild animals in the fight against rivals. The originally Greek word means “symbol of victory.” They are emblematic of the defensiveness and superiority of the hobby hunter over the animal killed.

It was found that with increasing passion for hunting and decreasing connection to nature, the signs and symbols demonstrating membership of the hobby hunter class are worn more frequently.

Horst E. Richter understands the fascination with weapons as a sublimation of pre-pubertal omnipotence desires and as an expression of aesthetically glorified phallic fantasies of grandeur.

Ursula Grohs (* 5 July 1958 in Graz) is an Austrian health and child psychologist, who developed the Psychodynamic Model Training (abbreviated: PDM) in 2003. Source: Psychological-Sociological Differences Between Hobby Hunters and Non-Hunters