Jonas R. Kunst
@kunstjonas.bsky.social
Professor of Communication and Psychology at BI Norwegian Business School and the University of Oslo Past Yale, Harvard, UiB. Editor-in-Chief at Advances.in Father. Views are my own.
I really like this new contribution to our special issue!
Advances.in@advances.in · 2d agoNew in advances.in/psychology: How do violent extremist leaders become deadlier? A multilevel analysis reveals that charismatic + personalized power = far deadlier organizations—but pragmatic leaders show the opposite pattern. https://doi.org/10.56296/aip00069
New in advances.in/psychology: How do violent extremist leaders become deadlier? A multilevel analysis reveals that charismatic + personalized power = far deadlier organizations—but pragmatic leaders show the opposite pattern. https://doi.org/10.56296/aip00069
Deadly persuasion: A multilevel analysis of leader influence tactics and lethality in violent extremist organizations
How does a leader's tenure change an extremist group's lethality? A longitudinal analysis of 645 leader-years uncovers surprising interaction effects.
advances.in
New in advances.in/psychology: Extremism isn't fragmenting—it's a developmental journey. Rousseau and Veissière argue that young people move fluidly across ideologies, often seeking meaning rather than coherent political goals. https://doi.org/10.56296/aip00068 #Psychology
Shifts and continuity in contemporary violent extremism: Moving toward a dynamic and developmental understanding?
Why is violent extremism fragmenting? A developmental look at youth radicalization, hybrid grievances, and nihilistic violence beyond static categories.
advances.in
When teens lose faith in politics, radicalism follows. New 5-year study in advances.in/psychology shows political distrust & powerlessness predict radical behavior. https://doi.org/10.56296/aip00061 🔍
System-disillusioned youth radicalize: The role of political alienation in the formation of political radicalism
Can feeling powerless make teens radical? A 5-year study of Swedish youth reveals how political distrust and alienation drive adolescent radicalism—especially in boys.
advances.in
🔍 New commentary in advances.in/psychology: Modern extremism often isn't ideological—some extremists are fixated on violence itself, not political goals. Cassam challenges how we understand radicalization. https://doi.org/10.56296/aip00062
Extremism without ideology
Can you be an extremist with no ideology at all? A provocative new analysis uses the Southport killer to challenge everything we assume about extremism.
advances.in
Hybrid extremism is real & intensifying, argues new advances.in/psychology paper. Baele defends the 'salad bar' concept against critics—showing how societal shifts produce composite ideological worldviews. https://doi.org/10.56296/aip00060
Why the ‘salad bar’ might actually help extremism research – A reply to Horgan and Shayler
Is 'salad bar' extremism real or just hype? A new analysis reveals why hybrid, incoherent ideologies are surging—and what the data actually show.
advances.in
We're sharing Arie Perliger's sharp critique of how the political violence research field diagnoses ideological "incoherence"—often missing deeper worldviews. A call for rigorous historical & comparative analysis. https://doi.org/10.56296/aip00059
The erosion of conceptual clarity in the study of political violence
Are extremists really ideologically incoherent? A sharp critique of the 'salad bar of ideologies' and the erosion of clarity in political violence research.
advances.in
Over the past eight years, LGBTQ+ communities have demonstrated remarkable resilience. While the perceived possibility of progressive change has steadily decreased, the strength of their social identity has only continued to grow.
Advances.in@advances.in · 3mo agoNew article! How do minority groups cope when social progress stalls or reverses? A new study tracks 3627 sexual minority participants from 2017 to 2025, showing that as pessimism about progressive social change grows, individuals lean into their collective identity. advances.in/psychology/1...
Over the past eight years, LGBTQ+ communities have demonstrated remarkable resilience. While the perceived possibility of progressive change has steadily decreased, the strength of their social identity has only continued to grow.
Advances.in@advances.in · 3mo agoNew article! How do minority groups cope when social progress stalls or reverses? A new study tracks 3627 sexual minority participants from 2017 to 2025, showing that as pessimism about progressive social change grows, individuals lean into their collective identity. advances.in/psychology/1...
Our study in 58 countries: support for intergroup violence is not a single mindset, but we can identify two distinct forms of extremism: defensive & offensive. Result of the @ncn.gov.pl project led by me & article led by @kunstjonas.bsky.social More in #PNAS www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... #psychology
The psychology of offensive and defensive intergroup violence: Preregistered insights from 58 countries | PNAS
Evolutionary theory and historical evidence suggest humans possess distinct psychological tendencies for defensive and offensive violence, which ha...
pnas.org
New paper: we propose a theory to help explain variation in democratic backsliding. We look at the case of Russia, Israel, & the US. We posit that collective memories about democracy influence models of collective action. advances.in/psychology/1... Led by the brill Neil Lavie-Driver @advances.in
New article! Why do some societies resist democratic backsliding while others remain indifferent or actively support it? Neil Lavie-Driver and @profsanderlinden.bsky.social extend the social identity model of collective action to explore the role of collective memory. advances.in/psychology/1...
Weaponising the past: An extended SIMCA model for how social identity and collective memory shape variation in collective action responses to democratic backsliding - advances.in/psychology
Explore a SIMCA-based framework on how identity and collective memory drive resistance or acquiescence to democratic backsliding in Russia, Israel, and the U.S.
advances.in
Fascinating study on Russian public opinion from August 2022. Researchers caught a rare window for an independent survey before the platform was shut down to academic polling. They found that 69% of respondents construed the war as undermining their social values. A vital look behind the propaganda.
Advances.in@advances.in · 4mo agoNew article! How do citizens in authoritarian contexts morally construe state actions? @vponizovskiy.bsky.social, @miweissflog.bsky.social, Evgeny Osin, and @grigolus.bsky.social explore how Russians view the war in Ukraine through core values. advances.in/psychology/1...
How exactly does artificial intelligence drive individuals toward violent extremism? I am excited to share our recent publication in Personality and Social Psychology Review, "Intelligent Systems, Vulnerable Minds: A Framework for Radicalization to Violence in the Age of AI."
What really drives someone to support violent extremism? I am thrilled to share our new article published today in PNAS. Together with an incredible team of collaborators, we conducted a preregistered study across 58 countries with over 18,000 participants. This is what we found.
My latest story is out. Bots get banned on social media. The workaround? Real humans posting AI-generated messages in a gamified system, coordinated by an AI command centre. And it's being offered to your local town councillor. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/02/24/i...
Canadian politicians are being sold AI-powered civilian patrols
A new app gets around bot bans by recruiting real people to post political messages generated by AI.
nationalobserver.com
Anthropic trains its models on the entire internet without paying for it. Also Anthropic:
"Eighty percent of Americans said voters have a responsibility to keep up with the news, but just 8% said they had a responsibility to pay for it." www.semafor.com/newsletter/0...
📝 New preprint on the threat of cyborg propaganda to democracy. We discuss how the key divide in online influence is no longer bots vs humans. We are entering an era of 'cyborg propaganda': Verified human identities disseminate centrally generated, AI-crafted narratives 🧵 osf.io/preprints/ps...
Kent Psychology is hiring 🎓We have two posts: 1) open area and 2) cog neuro. More details can be found here: jobs.kent.ac.uk/vacancy.aspx... Feel free to reach out with questions!
Job Opportunity at the University of Kent: Lecturer in Psychology
The School of Psychology is seeking to appoint a Lecturer in Psychology and a Lecturer in Psychology focusing on Cognition and Neuroscience to join a collegial, supportive, and intellectually vibrant...
jobs.kent.ac.uk
The distinction between grassroots activism and automated influence is collapsing. We typically worry about "bot farms" or "troll factories." But a distinct, more complex threat is emerging. We call it "Cyborg Propaganda."
Thrilled to announce the Oxford Psychological Networks Summer School (OxPNS)! This is the first-ever psychological network analysis workshop in the UK, to be held in magical Oxford from June 22-26, 2026. To apply and for more information, please visit: oxfordpns.com A brief thread 🧵
Publication Alert: Deconstructing the "Secure" Narrative of U.S. Democracy Many believe that recent authoritarian rhetoric in the United States is a sudden departure from a historically secure democracy. But has it ever been as stable as we think? advances.in/psychology/1...
Race, memory, and colorblindness: Critical history and deconstructing United States democracy
How colorblind history fuels authoritarianism—and how critical racial memory can build a stronger, more equitable democracy.
advances.in
We have a new paper in Science today on how malicious AI swarms can threaten democracy. AI systems can already coordinate autonomously, infiltrate communities, and fabricate social consensus. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... Led by @kunstjonas.bsky.social & @daniel-thilo.bsky.social!
Resilience or Complacency? While Republicans reported a steady increase in well-being during the start of Trump’s second term, Democrats showed a "rebound" pattern. Does returning to a higher state of well-being provide the strength to persist or reflect complacency? Study link in comments.
📰 New Research: The Politics of Well-Being during Democratic Backsliding @djwu.bsky.social ky.social, @kyleflaw.com, @stysyropoulos.bsky.social y.social, and @sylviapperry.bsky.social show striking partisan differences in well-being during Trump’s second term. advances.in/psychology/1...
The politics of well-being during democratic backsliding: How partisan affiliation and support for government actions relate to happiness and life satisfaction
Do politics shape happiness? Evidence from 5-week tracking links policy support to well-being amid democratic backsliding in the U.S.
advances.in
Many D&I strategies fail because they assume a "one size fits all" mindset. New data-driven research identifies 5 different response types to D&I policies: Champions, Reluctants, Ambivalents, Bystanders, and Opponents. Link to paper in comments.
Are you a Champion, a Bystander, or a Reluctant? Why D&I support isn’t just "For" or "Against." We are excited to publish "Voices behind walking the talk: Quantified qualitative insights on D&I policy support reasoning" in the latest issue of advances.in/psychology. advances.in/psychology/1...
Voices behind walking the talk: Quantified qualitative insights on D&I policy support reasoning
Champions and Bystanders: data-driven profiles explain D&I uptake. Learn the motives behind support, the role of managers, and how to turn intent into action.
advances.in
From the U.S. and Thailand to Hong Kong and Australia, new research confirms a consistent "backfire effect." When counter-protesters use violence to silence a progressive movement, they don't crush it—they amplify it. Full article (open access): advances.in/psychology/1...
New in advances.in/psychology: Did the 2024 election break political solidarity? 🗳️💔 A new study explores "stigma-based solidarity betrayal." Black women felt betrayed by Latino men (solidarity violation), White women felt betrayed by White men (relational violation). advances.in/psychology/1...
Stigma-based solidarity betrayal: Implications for resistance to the rise of ethno-nationalism in the U.S.
Betrayal in intergroup alliances: New evidence from 2024 U.S. election shows when solidarity breaks—and why it matters for trust and coalition building.
advances.in