London - Air rage incidents are more likely to happen on planes with a first-class section because it triggers resentment among economy passengers, a study has revealed.
When economy class customers boarded from the front of a plane – requiring them to walk through first class – they were more than twice as likely to be involved in an air rage incident, the US researchers found.
They studied a database of 5 million flights of a major airline and took into account possible factors for air rage, including seat width, how far a seat reclines, flight delays, length of flight, whether a flight was international or domestic, and cabin area.
But they said the biggest factor was “physical inequality” – signified by a first-class cabin. The chances of an air rage incident in economy class was nearly four times higher when there was a first-class section.
But the researchers also found being exposed to economy-class passengers increased the odds of air rage by first-class fliers by a remarkable 1 100 percent.
The first-class passengers experienced rage because being reminded of their superior status “prompts negative emotions” and aggression, the authors of the study argued.
Daily Mail