Rivalries exacerbate several destructive trends. They focus strategic attention– but by arousing negative emotions. They create a sense of threat and anxiety [the emotion that Marcus and colleagues (2000) find startles voters out of their routines and forces them to pay closer attention] and often spiral out of control. Rivalries can especially invoke issues of a player’s identity and survival, precipitating a crisis that can be solved by taking risks. In this case, the same sense of threat that inspires creativity can lead to too much creativity.