Among the many cultural forms of humanity, festivals may be the most colourful, expressive forms of culture that consist of music, rituals, and shared emotions. All over the world, people share collective joy during festivals that celebrate religious, agricultural, or national events. This visible joy often leads to the assumption that joy at festivals is a normative human experience (Durkheim, 1912/1995).
However, there is variation in the meaning, degree, and expression of that joy across individual and collective (social) dimensions. When we explore different cultural frameworks, psychological processes, and social contexts, it can become evident that joy at festivals varies considerably (Geertz, 1973).
Read More: How Festivals Improve Our Mental Health
The Social Foundations of Festival Joy
Former sociological thinkers did not view festivals simply as entertainment but as important procedures for community building. Émile Durkheim (1912/1995) introduced the idea of collective effervescence—the rush of emotional energy individuals feel when they come together for a purpose. In these rituals, people began to feel connected to something larger than themselves, and joy became a shared social emotion reinforced within the group.
Turner (1969) made a similar claim about festivals being “liminal” spaces in which ordinary hierarchies disappear and social bonds are strengthened. From this perspective, joy is not just something someone feels inside themselves, but it is a measure of social cohesion formed through participation in rituals (Turner, 1969)
Read More: Indian Rituals and Their Relation to Psychology
Psychological Perspectives: Is Joy Universal?
Psychologists have discussed for some time whether emotions, including joy, are universal. Paul Ekman’s (1992) original work on facial expressions supports this idea by suggesting that basic psychological emotions such as happiness have the same physiological and expressive signature, regardless of the cultural context.
Accordingly, the smiles and laughter of carnival revellers in Rio de Janeiro or the Hindu festival of Holi in Rajasthan would suggest some biological commonality for joy, for example. While physiological responses to bodily states may be consistent across cultures, what individuals understand and name as “joy” is dependent on culture (Barrett, 2017). Similarly, a single celebratory gesture might signify victory in one culture and humility in another.
Cultural Shaping of Emotional Experience
Culture regulates the rules of when and how emotions may be expressed. Geertz (1973) stated that emotional expressions derive meaning from cultural symbols and narratives.
For example, joy at an Indian Diwali is framed in the aspects of light overcoming darkness and renewal, but joy at a Japanese Hanami is centred on the appreciation of beauty and impermanence. In collectivist cultures, joy is often felt in connection with social harmony and gratitude, while in individualist cultures, joy is often inferred through personal agency and autonomy (Markus & Kitayama, 1991).
Economic and Social Dimensions of Celebration
Contemporary festivals exist within larger social and economic systems, like everything else. As societies urbanise or globalise, numerous festivals that emerged from social cooperation were transformed into commercialised spectacles. Getz (2010) claims that tourism-oriented festivals can be a catalyst for economic growth while simultaneously commodifying social (cultural) experiences of place, which results in less authenticity and emotional gravity.
Joy that was once a product of social engagement can, at times, shift toward performative enjoyment for visitors or media audiences. However, for some economically disadvantaged communities, festivals remain one of the few times when they can enjoy collective efficacy or emotional release (Putnam, 2000).
Individual Differences and Subjective Meaning
Even in identical cultural environments, individuals differ in their experiences of festival joy. People’s personality styles, life experiences, and social support will affect the intensity of positive emotion that they experience in collective contexts (Fredrickson, 2001). For example, a participant who is a high extrovert might feel invigorated by being surrounded by crowds; however, an introverted participant may feel overstimulated or exhausted by the same experience.
Based on Fredrickson’s broader build theory, positive emotions (joy) can serve to reliably broaden an individual’s thought-action repertoire, developing a degree of creativity and affording opportunities to bond socially with others (Fredrickson, 2001). Even within a collective experience, festival joy remains a personal concern.
Read More: Are Positive Emotions Just Fleeting Joy or Do They Have Lasting Benefits?
Power, Inclusion, and the Politics of Joy
Festivals are hardly neutral. They echo and bolster power relations. For example, Turner (1969) noted that while festivals may disarticulate hierarchies on the day of the event, they reconstitute boundary differences once normality is restored.
In many cases, marginalised groups are excluded or allowed only token participation. For example, national parades serve to unify the population while silencing dissent. In this way, joy—the joy being expressed in the public arena—may belong primarily to those with cultural and political legitimacy (Geertz, 1973). Who is in the crowd and who is expressing joy requires consideration of access, identity, and representation. The expression of joy is both communal and contested.
The Temporal Nature of Festival Joy
The emotional uplift that festivals bring is often short-lived. Research in the field of positive psychology suggests that temporary elevations in happiness—such as those experienced from shared social celebration in a community—can enhance well-being in the short-term, but temporary boosts in social support will dissipate quickly (Fredrickson, 2001).
However, festivals can foster longer-term resilience of a community through social bonding and grounding collective identity (Putnam, 2000). Whether post-festival joy will persist depends on the subsequent process, specifically, if the sense of collective social goodness displayed at festivals bridges into the everyday acts of cooperation and empathy with one another.
Read More: Positive Psychology: Harnessing the Power of Happiness, Mindfulness, Savouring & Inner Strength
Conclusion
Festival joy is not entirely universal nor entirely subjective; it resides in the intersection of biology, culture, and society. The public displays of joy associated with festivals and celebrations across the globe reveal some common human functions for emotion and attachment (Ekman, 1992). The meanings and depths of those emotional experiences are shaped by cultural practices, individual psychology, and social context.
Festivals serve to remind us that joy may look similar in form all around the world, but it is always embodied through variations of narrative, history, and identity. Within that variation is the beauty and complexity of the human emotional experience.
References +
Barrett, L. F. (2017). How emotions are made: The secret life of the brain. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Durkheim, É. (1995). The elementary forms of religious life (K. E. Fields, Trans.). Free Press. (Original work published 1912)
Ekman, P. (1992). An argument for basic emotions. Cognition and Emotion, 6(3–4), 169–200.
Fredrickson, B. L. (2001). The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions. American Psychologist, 56(3), 218–226.
Geertz, C. (1973). The interpretation of cultures. Basic Books.
Getz, D. (2010). The nature and scope of festival studies. International Journal of Event Management Research, 5(1), 1–47.
Markus, H. R., & Kitayama, S. (1991). Culture and the self: Implications for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review, 98(2), 224–253.
Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster.
Turner, V. (1969). The ritual process: Structure and anti-structure. Aldine
