Abstract
This paper discusses a longitudinal field study on collective action which aims to move beyond student samples and enhance mundane realism. First we provide a historical overview of the literature on the what (i.e., antecedents of collective action) and the how (i.e., the methods employed) of the social psychology of protest. This historical overview is substantiated with meta-analytical evidence on how these antecedents and methods changed over time. After the historical overview, we provide an empirical illustration of a longitudinal field study in a natural setting―a newly-built Dutch neighbourhood. We assessed changes in informal embeddedness, efficacy, identification, emotions, and grievances over time. Between t 0 and t 1 the residents protested against the plan to allow a mosque to carrying out their services in a community building in the neighbourhood. We examined the antecedents of protest before [t 0 ] and after [t 1 ] the protests, and whether residents participated or not. We show how a larger social network functions as a catalyst in steering protest participation. Our longitudinal field study replicates basic findings from experimental and survey research. However, it also shows that one antecedent in particular, which is hard to manipulate in the lab (i.e., the size of someone’s social network), proved to be of great importance. We suggest that in overcoming our most pertinent challenge―causality―we should not only remain in our laboratories but also go out and examine real-life situations with people situated in real-life social networks.
Highlights
This paper discusses a real-life longitudinal field study on collective action which aims to move beyond student samples and enhance mundane realism
After the historical overview of theoretical and methodological approaches to the social psychology of protest, we provide an empirical illustration of a longitudinal field study in a natural setting―a newly-built Dutch neighbourhood
In what follows we provide an empirical illustration of a longitudinal quasi-experimental field study in which we examined whether collective action participation is truly collective behaviour
Summary
This paper discusses a longitudinal field study on collective action which aims to move beyond student samples and enhance mundane realism. We provide a historical overview of the literature which should give us a good impression of the roots of the what (i.e., antecedents of collective action) and the how (i.e., the methods employed) of the social psychology of protest, and thereby the tensions and challenges inherent to its object of study (see Jahoda, 2007; Kruglanski & Stroebe, 2012) To substantiate our claims, we provide meta-analytical evidence (both in terms of the changing independent variables over the years as well as the changing methods). After the historical overview of theoretical and methodological approaches to the social psychology of protest, we provide an empirical illustration of a longitudinal field study in a natural setting―a newly-built Dutch neighbourhood. We show how a larger social network functions as a catalyst in steering protest participation
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