9.3 Inclusion of Other in Self

In several of our studies, we have been interested in assessing the extent to which furries and non-furries (e.g., others at a furry convention) felt a sense of connection or inclusion within the furry and non-furry community. We assess these feelings using a scale called the Inclusion of Other in Self Scale¹. In this scale, participants indicated the amount of “overlap” that existed between themselves and another group (either the furry fandom or non-furries). Higher numbers indicate greater “overlap” between the self and the group.

The data below² show firstly, and perhaps unsurprisingly, that non-furries consider themselves to be more connected to non-furries than to furries. Furries, on the other hand, felt pretty much equally connected to both furries and non-furries, as a group. Unexpectedly, therians, most of all, felt the most overlap between themselves and the furry fandom, a finding consistent with other data showing that therians have been in the furry fandom for longer on average³ and incorporate elements of the fandom’s content (e.g., animals) into their sense of self.⁴

1. Haverford.edu, About the Continuous IOS
2. International Furry Survey: Summer 2011
3. See section 7.4 Therians: Age of Origin
4. Please see sections section 7.2 Therians: Animal Identification; 7.3 Therians: Nature of Connection to Species