‘We Shall Overcome’: First-Person Plural Pronouns from Search Volume Data Predict Collective Action across the United States

Abstract

<p>Collective action is a key driver of social and political change within societies. So far, the main factor mobilizing individuals into collective action remains the extent to which they feel identified with a protesting group (i.e., social identification). Although the link between social identification and collective action is well-established, current evidence relies mostly on self-report data. To tackle this issue, we combined real-life protest counts in the US (2017-2020) with online search data (Google Trends) for pronouns indicating a ‘group’ mindset (first-person plural pronouns; e.g. ‘we’, ‘us’). Time series analyses indicated that weekly fluctuations in searches (N = 164) predict both protest and protester counts over time. Confirmatory mixed-models then showed that a 1% increase in pronoun searches was linked with +13.67% protests 95%CI[4.02,23.32] and +47.45% protesters 95%CI[26.54, 68.36] the following week. These original results have important implications for the ecological study and quantification of collective action dynamics in psychology.</p>

What “you” and “we” say about me: How small shifts in language reveal and empower fundamental shifts in perspective

“…By analyzing thousands of web searches, Adam‐Troian et al. (2021) found that increased use of first‐person plural pronouns at the population level predicted collective action, such as the number of protests in a given place, over time. Although the underlying mechanisms are difficult to isolate, the longitudinal design and time series analyses led the authors to conclude that first‐person plural pronouns revealed the extent to which people saw themselves as identified with a group.…”

“…Although the underlying mechanisms are difficult to isolate, the longitudinal design and time series analyses led the authors to conclude that first‐person plural pronouns revealed the extent to which people saw themselves as identified with a group. This increased group identification, in turn, was predictive of more collective action (Adam‐Troian et al., 2021).…”