1. The Role of Emotion in Far-Right Radicalisation and Deradicalisation
- Author
-
Cartmill, Tomas and Cartmill, Tomas
- Abstract
This thesis examines the role of emotion in manifestations of extreme right-wing thought, feeling and action. There has been a considerable increase in violent and non-violent right-wing extremism in the United States. In Australia, the Australian Security and Intelligence Organisation has identified an increase in the threat from right-wing extremism since 2019. Previous literature and policy have attempted to force radicalisation into a predictive, deterministic model; however, human behaviour is rarely linear or deterministic. The contemporary multi-modal (online and offline) context is far from linear, while belief systems and right-wing ideology are deeply emotive. Even the labelling of attitudes and actions as “extreme-right” may oversimplify what appears to be a broad and constantly evolving, unpredictable pattern of belief and action. Complexity science may help explain why some individuals do not radicalise while others, with apparently similar levels of vulnerability, do. There is limited literature on the role of emotion within the radicalisation and deradicalization process, despite emotions’ capacity to accelerate or amplify opinion and action. This thesis investigates the qualitative emotional and motivational experiences of current and ‘former’ ‘far-right’ extremists recruited from Twitter, Reddit, and Gab. Interviews were conducted by a clinical psychologist and analysed in accordance with interpretative phenomenological philosophy. Results suggest that emotional experience propelled radicalisation to the far-right through traumatic chaos, an unstable sense of self and fragile identity. Right-wing ideology was maintained through emotional validation and experience with cancel culture. In contrast, emotional experience motivated deradicalization through: diversity of experience, openness and insight, acceptance, and suffering through anger, guilt, embarrassment, shame, and sadness. These findings are important because they are generalisable across ide
- Published
- 2023