Narratives of Significance Loss and Power: A Study of the Manosphere & Online
Radicalization of Gen-Z Men
This project, a collaboration between Mindbridge’s Countering Extremism Directive (CED) and
the PiVOT Peace Lab, explores how Gen-Z men in the U.S. interpret masculinity, power, and
belonging in relation to extremist radicalization in the digital realm, sometimes referred to as the
“manosphere”.
Building on original Mindbridge research that investigated the radicalization of
women in the United States, this study examines the emotional reactive processing and
operational structure of far-right extremism online by adolescent and young adult men in the
United States. Grounded in social psychological theories of significance and belonging
(Kruglanski et al. 2022; Tajfel & Turner, 1979), the project aims to inform effective strategies for
peacebuilding, prevention, and deradicalization.
Our Goals
1. The Intersection of Personal Vulnerability and Extremist Narratives
Rooted in Significance Quest Theory (Kruglanski et al. 2022), this study examines how rapidly shifting social dynamics and personal experiences of humiliation, insecurity, or rejection can make young men vulnerable to extremist narratives.
We focus on elements of the “manosphere”, online spaces where misogyny and grievance can become ideological entry points to far-right domestic extremism.
2. Shifting the Paradigm on Extremism
This project also aims to challenge the current framing of extremist radicalization as solely a “lone wolf” phenomenon. Instead, we approach domestic extremism as a systemic issue shaped by social and cultural structures that normalize gender-based resentment and ideologically-driven violence.
Additionally, this research seeks to transform broader, strictly-defined perceptions of conflict as physical and challenge the normalization of digital extremism. Understanding this broader ecosystem is essential for developing effective responses rooted in prevention and deradicalization.
3. A Collaborative and Impactful Research Partnership
Through this partnership between Mindbridge’s CED and the PiVOT Lab, we’re co-developing a research design that is methodologically rigorous and contextually grounded. Together, we aim to contribute new insights and applications for the fields of peacebuilding, social psychology, and counterextremism.
Our Mission
This mixed-methods research initiative will investigate how young men, particularly from
Generation Z (b. 1997-2012), are impacted by extremist online spaces that reframe personal
grievances into ideologies of hate and violence.
By focusing on gender, identity, and digital
ecosystems like the manosphere, we aim to illuminate how psychological needs for meaning
and belonging are exploited in the manosphere, and how these same needs can be redirected
toward constructive, prosocial engagement.
