There are fascinating people who have studied insect behavior.  They’re called “entomologists.”  One of the well-known academics is E.O. Wilson—made even more well-known because of a PBS documentary about him.  http://www.pbs.org/program/eo-wilson/

He, and others, have studied the “swarm behavior” of insects like ants and bees.  As humans, we like to think we’re far superior to insects because of our brains and our independence from the group.  But wait a minute—

I think some criminal behavior is similar to insect behavior and may explain why humans, since the beginning of time, have committed crimes when they’re involved with groups.  So, what is swarming?

Bees give us good example.  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/05/26/why-you-shouldnt-freak-out-about-honeybee-swarms-and-how-to-save-bees-from-those-who-do/

When the nest gets over-crowded the colony must do something to survive.  A part of them will leave the hive in a swarm to find new place to build a safe nest.  Scientists think they swarm for several reasons:

—to protect each other

—to help the queen move to the new hive

—to send scouts ahead of the swarm to find a suitable place to build the new nest

—for social reasons and because they like each other’s company

How does swarm behavior explain criminal behavior?

Here’s an example of a flash mob that led to violence in Minneapolis.  During the St. Patrick’s Day parade, a family watched along the parade route.  As they left, a young man jumped out of the crowd and sucker-punched the father of the family in the face, driving him back against a wall.  http://www.startribune.com/get-tough-with-downtown-violent-offenders-and-work-on-preventing-youth-violence/373595971/  The young man was surrounded and encouraged by a group of his friends.  The father’s son finally broke through the flash mob, or swarm, of young people and got the police.  The police arrived on bikes.  Even after they managed to reach the injured father, the police had to use their bikes to hold-off the swarm until even more help arrived.

Is there some inherent quality that both bees and humans share?  The tendency to swarm into protective, and sometimes violent, groups?

When we were teenagers, you can remember how “brave” we felt—when you were surrounded by your buddies!  Swarming and crime occur for several reasons:

—the group feels safer and, therefore, more aggressive, beyond what each individual would normally do on his own

—the worst aspects of group think can lead the swarm into trouble

—once the swarm takes on a certain behavior, it’s hard to stop even if it leads to crime.

Have you experienced this behavior when in a youthful group?