“FARKLE” or Die: Edgework, Risk Control, and Impression Management among BMW Motorcycle Riders
Generate an AI Snapshot to get a quick, structured summary of this paper.
A concise AI-generated summary of the paper will appear here once you click Generate AI Snapshot.
Abstract
This research explores intersections of identity and voluntary risk taking, or edgework, among BMW motorcycle riders.Drawing upon interviews, participant observation, and analytic autoethnographic methods the practices of this subculture are presented.These findings are analyzed through sociological and social psychological understandings of situational identities and an appreciation of the personal and social dynamics to risk taking.This research presents the safety practices of the BMW motorcycle community labeled as "sport-tourers" and the processes they engage in to find an acceptable level of personal risk.Furthermore, findings from this work explain how riders encounter both positive and negative perceptions from others and the actions they engage in when facing potentially damaging impressions from others.This research helps to expand understandings of risk taking, presentational identity, and the universality of these themes.