A social normative model of solidarity-based collective action: Mobilising support for indigenous rights through social media

Indigenous rights groups have become increasingly active worldwide.

Mobilising support for indigenous rights movements aligns with a key UN Sustainable Development goal, (10) Reduced Inequalities.

This fellowship aims to elucidate how support for indigenous rights movements can be mobilised among the public by capitalising on the influences of social norms and the ease at which they are spread through social media platforms.

Though social media can be a tool for mobilisation, little is known about the psychological impacts of perceiving messages of solidarity online.

In this fellowship, I will expand my expertise on social norms by examining whether and how these normative messages influence advantaged groups’ engagement in indigenous rights movements, and how these messages impact the indigenous groups themselves.

I will employ innovative experimental and longitudinal methods to illuminate how different normative messages facilitate different psychological motivations for solidarity-based collective action.

I will draw on my current expertise in attitude networks to examine the issue from a novel perspective, and transfer these skills to my TC Host.

I will gain skills in social media analysis and longitudinal data analysis, which are vital for the research programme, and which I will transfer to my EU host.

The impact of this research will be enhanced by utilising a multigroup and multicontext approach, comparing findings from advantaged groups and disadvantaged indigenous groups across Chile and Ireland. This fellowship will expand the psychology of social movements by presenting a novel normative approach to solidarity.

Findings will assist Mapuche and Mincéir rights organisations in Chile and Ireland respectively in understanding how framing of social media campaigns can better mobilise public support.

Knowledge gained through this fellowship will be pivotal for the growth of my career as a leading researcher addressing injustices facing minorities in society.