Political distrust, perceived threat, and intentions to engage in normative and violent collective action: A mixed‐methods study

In three studies, we examined the role of distrust and perceived threat in intentions to engage in normative and violent non‐normative collective action. A field‐based qualitative study of 35 pro‐democracy protestors during the 2019 Hong Kong Anti‐Extradition protests revealed that perceived threat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of social psychology Vol. 53; no. 2; pp. 401 - 417
Main Authors: Gulliver, Robyn, Chan, Christian S., Tam, Katy Y. Y., Lau, Iris S. K., Hong, Ying Yi, Louis, Winnifred R.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Bognor Regis Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.03.2023
Subjects:
Acceptance
Collective action
Democracy
Extradition
Mixed methods research
Nonviolence
non‐normative collective action
normative action
Norms
perceived threat
political distrust
Political institutions
Qualitative research
Threats
Trust
violent collective action
Hong Kong China
China
ISSN:0046-2772, 1099-0992
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:In three studies, we examined the role of distrust and perceived threat in intentions to engage in normative and violent non‐normative collective action. A field‐based qualitative study of 35 pro‐democracy protestors during the 2019 Hong Kong Anti‐Extradition protests revealed that perceived threat to Hong Kong values alongside distrust of political institutions spurred collective action engagement and support for defensive violent collection action. In Study 2, a questionnaire (N = 639) testing pro‐democracy action intentions demonstrated direct paths on both normative and violent collective action intentions from distrust and threat. In Study 3 (N = 133), experimental trust and threat manipulations demonstrated a significant association between distrust and threat on violent collective action intentions and acceptance, and a significant interaction on acceptance of violent collective action. Our results reveal the importance of distrust and threat in attitudinal support for, and engagement in, collective action and their role in transitioning from non‐violent to violent collective action.
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ISSN:0046-2772
1099-0992
DOI:10.1002/ejsp.2910