According to a 2010 survey of over five thousand Star Trek fans, 47% of them believe that “indulging in cosplay” is a “deviant” way to enjoy the fandom.
Yes, dressing up in Star Trek uniforms (much less full Klingon garb) is more likely to be considered weird than giving yourself a Star Trek-esque name or Starfleet rank. Fans were allowed to use their own personal definition of deviant.
California State Professor Daryl Frazetti, who administered the survey, had quite a bit to say about this relatively old and established fandom:
Call them what you will, but fans overwhelmingly decided the top term to identify a Star Trek fan was Trekkie. Nearly 42% of respondents identified themselves as Trekkies, with Trek Fan coming in second with nearly 30% of respondents. Regardless of how fans identify themselves, members of this culture surely do a superb job of holding true to the the definition of what a fan is, someone showing support and enthusiasm for a particular area of focus. Perhaps more than any other group in any genre, Trek fans have certainly created the template for all fandom cultures.
The study, which you can read the entire results of here, has an extensive discussion of what it’s respondents considered to be “normal” or “deviant,” that sheds some light on the bleak pronouncement but still not enough. Can half of Star Trek fandom really be against people dressing up for cons?
Now that’s weird.
(via Fashionably Geek.)
