Hilary Evans and Robert E. Bartholomew - From fads, crazes, and manias to collective delusions, scares, panics, and mass hysterias, history is replete with examples of remarkable social behavior. This massive collection of extraordinary social behaviors spans more than two millennia

Hilary Evans and Robert E. Bartholomew, Outbreak! The Encyclopedia of Extraordinary Social Behavior, Anomalist Books, 2009.
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From fads, crazes, and manias to collective delusions, scares, panics, and mass hysterias, history is replete with examples of remarkable social behavior. Many are fueled by fear and uncertainty; others are driven by hope and expectation. For others still, the causes are more obscure. This massive collection of extraordinary social behaviors spans more than two millennia, and attempts to place many of the episodes within their greater historical and cultural context.
This Encyclopedia is an authoritative reference on a broad range of topics: collective behavior, deviance, social and perceptual psychology, sociology, history, folklore, religious studies, political science, social anthropology, gender studies, critical thinking, and mental health. Never before have so many sources been brought together on the mesmerizing topic of collective behavior

"...an absorbing and authoritative read and an extremely valuable reference for anyone interested in the field of psychosomatic medicine."- Keith Petrie

"Outbreak! is a treasure trove for cultural psychiatrists... The book contains a phenomenal 2880 citations, a great many of which are original sources...  It's a terrific reference book and I heartily recommend it."- Amando Favazza  

"...looks set to become the definitive reference work of our age on bizarre collective delusions and mass hysteria."- Professor Chris French

...this Encyclopedia is an essential work...The large choice of nineteenth century French studies, mostly medical, of visions and apparitions is especially notable. -Véronique Campion-Vincent

"...quite possibly the most important contribution to the world of Forteana... in a very long time...

...The book is indeed scholarly; but it is also highly informative, insightful, illuminating and witty. 

- Nick Redfern

"I was incredibly impressed. A remarkable and surprising collection of social behaviors that demonstrates how quickly we humans make the bizarre seem normal when we huddle together in groups. Both compelling and complete...an Aladdin's cave of social curiosities drawn from rigorous research. I can't think of any book that is a more complete guide to the oddities of human social history." - Vaughan Bell

"In this encyclopedic guide to the wilder shores of collective behavior, Evans and Bartholomew explore unusual social movements and what seem otherwise inexplicable outbreaks of collective behaviors. The result is a work of immense erudition and scholarship but also a thumping good read. I read it on a plane, and found that my companions in the seats either side of me were as engrossed as I was..." - Simon Wessely
 "An extraordinary compilation of approximately 340 incidents of collective behavior spread over many countries on all continents, encompassing a time span of centuries. It is, without any doubt, the most ambitious undertaking of its sort, with entries ranging from the Children's Crusades to the Chilean Martian Panic, from Cyber Ghost Scares to the Popish Plot...an excellent resource for library references as well as for college-level teachers of collective behavior." - Benigno Aguirre