Explaining online conspiracy theory radicalization: A second‐order affordance for identity‐driven escalation

Abstract

From #Pizzagate to anti‐vaxxers, passing by 9/11 or Obama ‘birthers’, we have seen many communities growing on social media around conspiracy theories and thereby gaining public prominence. Debunking or presenting alternative views to conspiracy theories often fails because individuals within these communities can grow more resolute, encouraging and reinforcing their beliefs online. Instead of withering in the face of contradiction, such communities hunker down; escalating their commitment to their conspiratorial beliefs. By interacting over social media platforms, they develop a sense of a shared social identity, which in turn fosters escalating behaviours and can lead to radicalization. For some people, the choice of abandoning or moderating these beliefs is unthinkable because they are too deeply invested to quit. This study advances a second‐order affordance for identity‐driven escalation that explains the process of conspiracy theory radicalization within online communities. We offer a theoretical account of the way social media platforms contribute to escalating commitment to conspiracy radicalization. We show how the sequential and combined actualization of first‐order affordances of the technology enables a second‐order affordance for escalation.

Visual audience gatekeeping on social media platforms: A critical investigation on visual information diffusion before and during the Russo–Ukrainian War

“…Radicalization is commonly defined as the acceptance or justification of violence (Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023) and is integrally connected to extremism, defined as the adherence to doctrinally extreme viewpoints (Risius et al, 2023). Prior research highlights the role of visual content in facilitating radicalization (Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023). Our proposed theoretical model extends this line of inquiry by revealing that, within contexts where audiences perceive threats arising from societal tensions that challenge the incumbent paradigm, the potential for the dissemination of radical visual narratives imbued with extremist ideologies increases.…”

“…Polarisation is also intricately tied to radicalization (Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023) and online extremism (Risius et al, 2023). Radicalization is commonly defined as the acceptance or justification of violence (Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023) and is integrally connected to extremism, defined as the adherence to doctrinally extreme viewpoints (Risius et al, 2023). Prior research highlights the role of visual content in facilitating radicalization (Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023).…”

“…For instance, the QAnon network strategically leverages visual information to propagate conspiracy theories, targeting individuals' emotions such as anger and fear (Hannah, 2021). As such, visual content can fuel radicalization (Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023) and serve as a medium for promoting radical and extremist ideologies. Memes, for example, have been wielded as a ‘discursive weapon’ to judge, condemn, and ostracise others (Nissenbaum & Shifman, 2017, p. 218) and have been ‘weaponized’ to further extremist ideologies, including Nazism (Peters & Allan, 2021).…”

“…Such attributes can entrench pre-existing ideological beliefs (Domke et al, 2002) and become especially perilous during polarising events owing to non-expert users' susceptibility to unconscious biases (Kim et al, 2019). Indeed, existing literature has underscored the connection between visual content and misinformation and disinformation (Zhukova, 2019), radicalization (Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023), and extremism (Peters & Allan, 2021). Although prior research has shed light on the dual nature of this phenomenon, a comprehensive understanding of the dynamics of visual audience gatekeeping on social media platforms remains elusive.…”

“…The forces outlined in the theoretical model have important implications for research on social media platforms, with a specific emphasis on their unintended side effects. In particular, it enhances our understanding of the nexus between visual content and social media phenomena such as misinformation and disinformation (e.g., Gimpel et al, 2021), polarisation (e.g., Miller et al, 2022; Wang et al, 2023), radicalization (e.g., Mikhaeil & Baskerville, 2023), and online extremism (e.g., Risius et al, 2023). In addition, our theoretical model clarifies the distinctions between legacy gatekeeping enacted by influential elites and institutions (e.g., Thorén et al, 2014) and audience gatekeeping performed by users on social media platforms (e.g., Kwon et al, 2012).…”