I decided to create a short 9 question survey about the Rave Subculture. I used Facebook as the medium for the survey and set the time frame between April; Tuesday 5th, 7.00pm - April; Friday 8th, 7.00pm. I invited 166 people off my friends list, of which (unfortunately) only 32 took the time to answer the questions in the given time frame (which also reflects the mainstream culture's ignorance and laziness).
Using what I had learnt so far (excluding the religious/ritual implications as I felt it was a sensitive matter) I created a wide range of questions reflecting the nature of raves and ravers, to gather the opinions and knowledge from the general public.
Screenshot of the Facebook event. Link to page here.
The questions I asked are as follows, ranging from multiple choice to a more direct personal opinion. I included a trick question for Q7 which showed me whether those who chose yes to Q1 knew the difference or if they are ill informed.
1. Would you classify yourself as part of the ‘rave subculture’?
[a] Yes; 1980’s-1990’s Rave
[b] Yes; NuRave
[c] No
2. If no for question 1, what subculture would you classify yourself as? (If yes proceed to question 3)
E.g. Emo, Goth, Chav, Hipster, Geek etc.
3. What is a ‘happening’?
[a] When the DJ drops a sick beat.
[b] A large outdoor event/party.
[c] Where a group of individuals start a fight.
[d] The sharing of drugs within a group.
4. Where are raves typically held?
[select all that apply]
[a] Warehouses
[b] Clubs
[c] Outside/Outdoor Events
[d] Bedrooms
[e] Rooftops
[f] Roads and motorways
[g] The Sky
5. What are the stereotypical drugs that are most associated with ravers?
[select all that apply]
[a] Marijuana/Weed
[b] Solvents
[c] LSD/Acid
[d] Heroin
[e] Opium
[f] Cocaine
[g] MDMA/Ecstasy
[h] Ketamine
[i] 2C-B
[j] Mushrooms
[k] Speed
6. What does P.L.U.R. stand for?
[a] Peace, Love, Unity, Respect
[b] Power, Lights, Underground, Rave
[c] Praise, Listen, Uproar, Repeat
[d] Pride, Liquor, Unconsciousness, Roar
7. What is the stereotypical 1980’s-1990’s rave dress code?
[a] Glow Sticks, Neon Clothing, Bright Colours, Tight Clothing, etc.
[b] Tracksuit Bottoms, Gold Chains, Sports shoes, Sports Caps, etc.
[c] Glow sticks, Baggy Clothes, Lollipops, Teddybears, Visors, White gloves, Whistles, etc.
[d] Black Clothing, Died Black Hair, Chains, White Face Make-up, Religious Symbols, etc.
8. Would you attend a rave given the chance/Have you attended a rave before?
[a] Yes; I have been to one
[b] Yes; I would attend one
[c] No
9. What does the word and/or action of a ‘rave’ mean to you?
After 7.00pm on Friday I collated the information gained from the survey.
1.
[a] 2
[b] 3
[c] 27
Most of the general public do not classify themselves as ravers, but those who do see themselves as NuRavers rather than 1980's/1990's ravers.
2.
[N/A (Mainstream)] 11
[Goth] 1
[Geek] 12
[Chav] 1
[Emo] 1
[Rocker] 1
[Dubhead] 1
[Skater] 1
[Metalhead] 1
Those who didn't answer yes to the previous question then classified themselves within a subculture, and just over two thirds claim to be a geek or no subculture at all (mainstream). some even classified themselves into two subcultures, such as Rocker and Emo together.
3.
[a] 3
[b] 28
[c] -
[d] 1
Nearly all those who answered know what a 'happening' is, despite including trick questions which I felt would catch people out.
4.
[a] 21
[b] 21
[c] 15
[d] 5
[e] 6
[f] -
[g] 1
The places which most people believe raves to be held are in Warehouses and Clubs, which is correct, although from the research I have looked into, clubs would usually be a closed door event and hiding from the police. The person who answered 'The Sky' was most probably mocking the survey as I placed it in as a trick answer, however it could actually happen, possibly on an aircraft of some type.
5.
[a] 2
[b] 3
[c] 18
[d] 4
[e] 2
[f] 10
[g] 22
[h] 7
[i] 2
[j] 9
[k] 20
The drugs that the general public most associate 'Ravers' with are LSD/Acid, MDMA/Ecstacy and Speed. This to me is surprising, as the research I have done hasn't mentioned the use of speed in any form, except most people believe this to be one of their main drugs. The other drugs which the research has shown that ravers take are Marijuana/Weed, Ketamine and 2C-B, Weed and 2C-B being two of the least picked options, and Ketamine just under a third of which people chose.
6.
[a] 17
[b] 12
[c] 3
[d] -
With the addition of the trick answer [b] I was able to see exactly who knew what P.L.U.R. stood for and weren't just guessing, which showed that despite this the majority still knew it's meaning.
7.
[a] 28
[b] -
[c] 5
[d] -
This is the question which I added an extremely harsh trick answer, just to see if those who answered yes to question 1 knew what they are talking about. [a] is the answer for NuRavers, [c] is the one for the 1980's/1990's rave scene. I knew before I created this question that most people would answer [a] just simply because before I had researched into the rave subculture that is exactly what I too would have picked. This is due to cultural stereotypes of the NuRave scene, that have been forced upon us through comercial use and commodities fulled by the mainstream industry, which has picked up and made popular the NuRave subculture.
8.
[a] 6
[b] 18
[c] 10
Most who answered have not attended a 'rave' before, but the majority would want to go, and from the comments of those who answered the common theme is "Just to see what it is like".
9.
[Alcohol] 7
[Glowsticks] 2
[Music] 19
[Drugs] 8
[Dancing] 13
[Party] 6
[Colour] 5
[Spontaneous] 1
[Likeminded People] 2
[DJs (Disk Jockeys)] 2
[Outdoor] 2
[Lights/Neon] 10
[Sweat] 2
[Chaos] 8
Given an open ended question to see what they think a 'rave' is in their eyes, the expected and most prominent answers are that of lights, music and dancing, with drug use, alchohol and 'chaos' (of which people describes as letting yourself go and moving crazy) close behind.
This survey has provided a great insight into that of the public opinion and knowledge of the rave subculture. It has also shown me that some who classify themselves as ravers, actually don't know much about the subculture they claim to be, no knowledge of history or even events.
Of those 5 people who claimed they were ravers, 3 were well informed, they knew what they were talking about and had a good knowledge of the subculture. The other two were extremely misinformed, providing 'incorrect' answers, and not knowing what they are talking about. Of the two, one claimed they are a NuRaver and the other a 1980's-1990's raver.
However, because this survey was open to everyone, anyone could see the other comments, and this may have lead to conformity and ill-chosen decisions as they 'didn't know the correct answer' so they didn't want to look 'wrong' thus harming their reputation, but the answers seem to be quite varied, some answering completely different to others, so this might not be the case.
Another reason why this survey may not show the true knowledge and understanding of the general public is because I asked all of my 'friends' on Facebook and no one else which could be seen as biased. However, even though they are 'friends' on the networking site, I do not speak to them every day, and only a handfull of them I speak to regularly, so the fact that we are 'friends' may not matter as much as if i was in constant contact with each and every one of them.
However, even if it is biased, the answers still reflect what they believe, most of which is the stereotypical (albeit a common theme) of the rave subculture.
Posted by Gary.
