Identity Fusion in Virtual Groups: The Impact of Shared Dysphoric Experiences in Global Echo Chambers on Online Radicalisation
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Oxford
Department Name: Sch of Anthropology & Museum Ethnography
Abstract
This research project seeks to explore the impact of online echo chambers on identity fusion through an interdisciplinary lens, combining the concept of identity fusion and narrative research on identity. Building on existing research from the fields of cognitive anthropology, social psychology and communication studies, its goal is to analyse the role of shared dysphoria on identity fusion within extremist online communities. For this purpose, I propose to develop and test a set of hypotheses using a three-layered approach that encompasses linguistic analysis, ethnographic research and interviews with radicalised individuals. There is a rich and growing body of research on radicalisation in the digital space, spanning from psychological experiments and sociological studies to linguistic analyses and narrative research in online extremist forums. Despite a wide range of studies aiming to understand how individuals and groups adopt extreme attitudes and behaviours in the digital space, the question whether and how online identity fusion takes place in extremist forums online remains an enigma. To date, there is no systematic analysis of the relationship between identity formation within emerging digital echo chambers and radicalisation. This research project therefore seeks to fill this gap by exploring the drivers and manifestations of identity fusion in the digital arena.
The overall aim of the project is to make progress on questions related to identity formation, in-group and out-group thinking and radicalisation in the digital space. Beyond its contribution to filling academic gaps related to the study of online radicalisation and the online-offline extremism nexus, this research project could also provide valuable insights for policymakers, social media companies and frontline practitioners seeking to understand, prevent and combat online radicalisation.
The overall aim of the project is to make progress on questions related to identity formation, in-group and out-group thinking and radicalisation in the digital space. Beyond its contribution to filling academic gaps related to the study of online radicalisation and the online-offline extremism nexus, this research project could also provide valuable insights for policymakers, social media companies and frontline practitioners seeking to understand, prevent and combat online radicalisation.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Harvey Whitehouse (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Julia Ebner (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES/P000649/1 | 01/10/2017 | 30/09/2027 | |||
| 2260284 | Studentship | ES/P000649/1 | 01/10/2019 | 07/04/2023 | Julia Ebner |
| Description | The thesis presents a new coding scheme which traces the psycholinguistic markers found across the written statements published by terrorists prior to launching an attack. A total of 4,000 pages by fifteen authors on a spectrum from violent terrorist to non-violent political were analysed in a comparative manifesto analysis and tested in an intercoder reliability (ICR) analysis. The statistical and ethnographic findings indicate that linguistic proxies for identity fusion and other relevant variables such as existential threat narratives, violence-condoning group norms and demonising vocabulary can be reliably identified and are significantly higher in the documents of would-be terrorists. The statistically relevant variables were then integrated into a combined weighted score, a new "Violence Risk Index", which was applied to eight online groups varying in their degree of extreme ideologies, verbal commitment to violence and real-world links to terrorist activities. A total of over 1 million messages were collected from online forums and messaging apps, and investigated with a view to determining the scale and nature of violence-predicting narratives and language in each of the groups. The thesis argues that psychologically grounded linguistic markers are a more reliable predictor of extreme violence than taking violent threats at face value. While this project's findings should be treated with caution, they may contribute to complementing and improving existing early warning systems used by security and intelligence services. |
| Exploitation Route | My DPhil findings have been translated into several types of outputs for academic, policy and tech sector audiences. Based on my DPhil, I led the publication of several peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, including a comparative online terrorist manifesto analysis published in the journal Studies in Conflict and Terrorism and a language-based analysis of the QAnon security threat for Perspectives on Terrorism's Special Issue on Anti-Government Extremism, as well as a review of psychological drivers of radicalisation in the Routledge Handbook on Radicalisation and Countering Radicalisation and an overview of online communication tactics used by anti-democracy movements in the Routledge Handbook of Conflict and Peace Communication. In 2022, I presented my DPhil findings at the 14th Annual International Conference of the Society for Terrorism Research (Coventry) and the 22nd Annual Conference of the European Society of Criminology (Malaga). In 2022 and 2023, I presented the findings of my DPhil project to 250+ employees of the German domestic intelligence agency Verfassungsschutz at the Cologne and Berlin headquarters and gave briefings to YouTube's executives and policy teams at the firm's headquarters in St Bruno, California. Two more journal articles are currently being peer reviewed and my DPhil thesis will be published as an academic book by Columbia University Press. There is a strong interest both in the intelligence community and in tech companies to use the new Violence Risk Index I designed as part of the DPhil as an initial risk assessment tool to inform future terrorism prevention approaches and allocate resources for online investigations. I plan to apply my assessment framework to different datasets to test and refine it further and to continue my policy advisory work based on the DPhil's findings. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Government, Democracy and Justice,Security and Diplomacy |
| URL | https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/binaries/content/assets/customsites/perspectives-on-terrorism/2022/issue-6/pot-xvi-6-a6-ebner-et-al.pdf |
| Description | My interim research findings have been used in closed briefings I held for security forces and intelligence agencies in the UK and several European countries. They have also formed the basis for my presentations to civil society-led violent extremism prevention providers. Furthermore, I held several lectures and talks at universities, schools and in other public institutions where my DPhil research was used to raise awareness about the patterns in the narratives and language used by extremists who are in the process of radicalising towards violence. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2021 |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Impact Types | Societal,Policy & public services |
| Description | Briefings for national intelligence services |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
| Description | YouTube/Google briefings based on DPhil findings |
| Geographic Reach | North America |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Senior Research Fellowship at ISD |
| Organisation | Institute for Strategic Dialogue |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | Drawing on my DPhil research, I've been supervising and contributing to research and policy advisory projects at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue (ISD). |
| Collaborator Contribution | The ISD's network of experts and tech tools has been a great help and inspiration for my DPhil research. |
| Impact | policy briefings, public engagement activities (talks and media interviews) |
| Start Year | 2017 |