Social-psychological Predictors of Support for Terrorism: A Multi-level Analysis
Lead Research Organisation:
Cardiff University
Department Name: Sch of Psychology
Abstract
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Organisations
Publications
Becker JC
(2011)
Committed dis(s)idents: participation in radical collective action fosters disidentification with the broader in-group but enhances political identification.
in Personality & social psychology bulletin
Russell Spears (Author)
Nothing to lose : desperate circumstances require desperate measures
Tausch N
(2011)
Explaining radical group behavior: Developing emotion and efficacy routes to normative and nonnormative collective action.
in Journal of personality and social psychology
| Description | The project has made theoretical, empirical, and methodological contributions to the field. Theoretical: Our research was the first to apply theoretical models of collective action to the issue of support for political violence. It extended existing models by demonstrating that, although similar psychological processes are involved in non-normative as in normative collective action (i.e., injustice and efficacy appraisals, emotions), there are also important differences (e.g., contempt rather than anger predicts support for non-normative action, low rather than high general efficacy predicts support for non-normative action). Empirical: Although some of the investigated mechanisms were described in anecdotal examples (i.e., low efficacy as a predictor of violence), these had not been investigated quantitatively. Our research has extended the field by empirically examining predictors of support for non-normative action. Moreover, our findings help to dispel some widely held beliefs, such as that anger is an important predictor of collective violence, or that living in highly segregated or deprived areas is associated with radical views. Methodological: One of the most innovative aspects of this project was that it examined the role of social context in these psychological processes by using a multi-level approach. Multi-level conceptualizations of social-psychological phenomena are still rare in the literature. The structure of our data allowed us to conduct sophisticated statistical analyses such as multi-level latent class analysis (MLLCA), which enabled us to distinguish different constellations of political attitudes at both the individual and the context level. This method has thus far been applied in only one published paper (a clinical study). Key findings: Distinguishing latent classes: MLLCA allowed us to establish a typology of political attitudes both at the level of individuals and context. The analyses revealed that three meaningful latent classes could be distinguished: individuals who support neither normative nor non-normative action (66.1%), individuals who support normative action (e.g., protest) but reject violence (24.2%), and individuals who support both (9.7%). At the level of neighbourhood, two types of context emerged: areas where the majority (83%) of respondents were apolitical and areas where most respondents supported political action (on average 59% supported normative action but rejected violence in these areas, and 16.8% supported both). The role of emotion: A consistent finding was that contempt in relation to foreign policy, rather than anger, predicts support for non-normative action such as violence and distinguishes latent classes of people who reject vs. support violence. The role of efficacy: Our findings for the role of efficacy are more complex. While there is some evidence that low efficacy predicts support for violence, different types need to be distinguished. Most predictive of the rejection of violence was high perceived efficacy of normative channels. Contextual variables as predictors: Overall, our multi-level analyses suggest that context explains a significant amount of variation in individual attitudes. The MLLCA revealed, however, that living in areas with a high Muslim concentration or in deprived areas does NOT predict politicization or support for violence. |
| Exploitation Route | The first paper based on the findings from this project (Tausch et al., 2011) is already widely cited and used by other research groups working on collective action and social movements. It emphasized the distinction between different types of action and identified the different underlying psychological mechanisms. These findings are important for further theory development and have implications for our understanding of radical action like terrorism. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy |
| Description | It is too early to identify any tangible economic or societal impacts of this research. Policy and practical implications of our research have primarily focused on providing new insights into the psychological factors involved in attitudes towards normative and non-normative political action and on understanding the role of social context in these processes. Our initial findings have been discussed with members of the non-academic community and relevant stakeholders and we hope that our findings (once finalized) will have a more direct societal impact as we further develop these links and disseminate our findings. |
| Description | "Nothing to lose" : desperate circumstances require desperate measures. Invited colloquium, University of Queensland, Australia |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited colloquium, University of Queensland, Australia Fruitfuil discussions. Raised awareness of the work and led to citations of the Tausch et al. 2011 paper. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | Collective action and social change : toward integration and innovation. Medium Size Meeting held in Groningen, The Netherlands, July 2009 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Scientific meeting (conference/symposium etc.) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Type Of Presentation | workshop facilitator |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Medium Size Meeting held in Groningen, The Netherlands, July 2009 Raised awareness of the work, stimulated collaboration. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
| Description | Emotion and efficacy pathways to normative and non-normative political action. BPS Social Psychology Section annual conference 2010 : social psychology in action : theoretical debate and social impact . Winchester, UK |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Sparked discussion & Raised awareness of the work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | Emotion and efficacy pathways to normative and non-normative political action. Invited lecture at a Social and Organizational Psychology seminar, University of Exeter. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited lecture at a Social and Organizational Psychology seminar, University of Exeter. Fruitful discussions after the talk. Citations of this work by some members of the audience. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | Explaining radical group behaviour: Developing emotion and efficacy routes to normative and non-normative collective action. Paper presented at the 16th General Meeting of the European Association of Experimental Social Psychology, Stockholm, Sweden. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Discussion afterwards & raised awareness of the work. Probably contributed to citations of the work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
| Description | Explaining radical group behaviour: Developing emotion and efficacy routes to normative and non-normative collective action. Paper presented at the EASP Small Group Meeting "Extreme Emotions", Amsterdam, The Netherlands. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Useful discussions. Potential collaborations discussed. Raised awareness of the work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
| Description | Explaining radical group behaviour: The Roles of emotions and efficacy in predicting normative and non-normative collective action. University of Stirling, invited seminar. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | University of Stirling, invited seminar. Raised awareness of the work & sparked discussion. useful feedback on preliminary results. - |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2012 |
| Description | Nothing to lose : a provocative strategy of collective resistance. Invited talk at 'The fundamental things apply : retirement symposium for Dick Eiser' (J. Richard Eiser), held at the University of Sheffield. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited talk at 'The fundamental things apply : retirement symposium for Dick Eiser' (J. Richard Eiser), held at the University of Sheffield. - |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| URL | http://www.sheffield.ac.uk/content/1/c6/05/98/26/Seminar%20list%20poster.pdf |
| Description | Nothing to lose : desperate circumstances require desperate measures. Invited lecture, group-focused enmity presentation at the University of Marburg. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited lecture, group-focused enmity presentation at the University of Marburg. Fruitful discussion of the work. Raised awareness of novel theoretical developments. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
| Description | Nothing to lose : desperate circumstances require desperate measures. Invited presentation at the Lisbon University Institute (ISCTE-IUL) (Instituto Universitário de Lisboa). |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited presentation at the Lisbon University Institute (ISCTE-IUL) (Instituto Universitário de Lisboa). awareness of novel findings |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
| Description | Nothing to lose : desperate circumstances require desperate measures. Invited presentation at the University of Zurich. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited presentation at the University of Zurich. Raised awareness of the work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | Nothing to lose : desperate circumstances require desperate measures. Presented as part of the University of Kent School of Psychology research seminar programme. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Presented as part of the University of Kent School of Psychology research seminar programme. Increased interest in novel findings and theoretical developments. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2009 |
| URL | http://www.kent.ac.uk/psychology/seminars/index.html |
| Description | Nothing to lose : further evidence for disempowered groups. Invited presentation at the University of Padua (Università degli Studi di Padova). |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited presentation at the University of Padua (Università degli Studi di Padova). Fruitful discussions & raised awareness of the work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2010 |
| Description | Nothing to lose : the paradoxical power of the powerless; Invited keynote talk for Krakow Seminar on Social Cognition and Intergroup Relations |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited keynote talk for Krakow Seminar on Social Cognition and Intergroup Relations Raised awareness of the work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
| URL | http://www.seminaruj.2ap.pl/programme.html |
| Description | Predictors of support for political violence. Invited talk at the Policy Café, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University. |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Invited talk at the Policy Café, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University. Useful discussion and exchange of ideas. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |