So, a team of athletes is not subject to the influences of confirmation and groupthink? Don't know what makes them so superhuman, but OK.
It doesn't need to infect 100% of the group to have an effect. Some much smaller % would be sufficient. But, before you place any more burdens on me, that is just another opinion I can't prove.
Can we agree to disagree now? I'm not about to change my opinion.
You're welcome to admit that it's next to impossible for you to prove your position, but I will call this line of thought out every time that it's presented as being hogwash.
I never said it was all that common. Yes it is an opinion - and an entirely subjective one at that. It certainly isn't a factor every time a team loses. It requires a reason for a group of players to build up an expectation of an easy win. That means at least the perception of a mismatch.
So: how is it that we determine when the team in question was overconfident?
Or is it more likely that parity exists in the league, and it takes very little to sway the results in favour of one team or the other? A little puck luck here, a few mistakes there, and voila: you have a win going in the direction you didn't expect.
Over-confidence is a fan narrative.
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