Digital Society
The Digital Society line of research focuses on harmful online behaviour that puts pressure on public values and the democratic rule of law. Specifically, this concerns behaviours such as online discrimination against minorities, online threats and intimidation of administrators and civil servants, influencing by disinformation and the spread of conspiracy theories. This type of online behaviour poses complex issues for professionals and public organisations alike.
We help public institutions develop a coherent approach to online behaviour that puts pressure on the democratic rule of law and public values.
Improving expertise and action perspectives
Through our applied scientific research, we contribute to furthering expertise and the development of action perspectives around these complex issues. Together with professionals, we work on developing interventions, guidelines and advice for professionals and public institutions.
Our research
Our research contributes to furthering expertise and action perspectives for tackling harmful online behaviour. Examples of projects in the Digital Society research line include:
- Grip Online: A research programme into online behaviour that is harmful to society and the democratic rule of law.
- Real or unreal danger: An exploratory study of the local, preventive approach to online conspiracy thinking. Read the report here.
- Moral behaviour of young people on the Internet: research into the subject of moral behaviour of young people on the Internet (based on public values) has become concrete, including the exploration of angles for research and the role of education and the library sector in promoting behaviour.
- PhD research on anti-establishment conspiracy thinking: Renze Tjoelker is doing PhD research on anti-establishment conspiracy thinking in the Netherlands in collaboration with the University of Twente, Faculty of Behavioural, Management and Social Sciences (BMS).
Our partners
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