Professor Emma Thomas: From Vulnerability to Mobilisation: Person × Situation Interactions in Conspiracy-Based Radicalisation

Abstract

Online environments are often portrayed as inherently radicalising, yet people exposed to the same conspiracism, social influence, and online discussions frequently respond in very different ways. Why do some individuals adopt conspiracy beliefs while others remain sceptical? More broadly, how do personal vulnerabilities interact with social contexts to shape belief, group formation, and (violent) collective action?

I address these questions using a social identity framework that suggests that conspiracy beliefs become a force for social action and change when they become defining of “us”. I’ll discuss our research involving large language modelling and experiments, exploring how individual vulnerabilities combine with online social influence, to shape conspiracy belief endorsement, identification with belief-based groups, and action.

The findings confirm that online interaction is not inherently radicalising. Rather, the consequences of online social influence depend on the interaction between features of a person and the social context in which beliefs are discussed. More broadly, person × situation interactions shape multiple pathways, highlighting the value of social identity approaches for understanding contemporary forms of radicalisation and collective behaviour in the digital age.

Bio

Professor Emma Thomas is a social psychologist at Flinders University, where she serves as an Australian Research Council Future Fellow and Deputy Director of the Jeff Bleich Centre for Democracy and Disruptive Technology. Her work uses experimental, longitudinal and computational methods to understand when, why and how people commit to engaging in (violent and non-violent) action to bring about a desired social change. She has been funded via multiple grants from the Australian Research Council and government (through the Office of National Intelligence, Department of Defence). Her research has been featured in national and international media, and recognised with awards from the Australian Psychological Society, Society of Australasian Social Psychologists, and the Australian Institute of Policy and Science, amongst others.