Paper Type
Complete
Paper Number
PACIS2026-2112
Description
Protest movements shape political life, yet the mechanisms linking collective toxicity to behavioral homogenization remain theoretically unspecified and empirically untested. Existing multilayer analyses are largely static, temporally aggregated, and seldom contextualized in Global South protest cases. We introduce the Multilayer Behavioral Homogenization Framework (MBHF), grounded in Social Identity Theory and complex social contagion theory, applied to 147,529 tweets from 21,677 users during the 2025 TNI Bill protests on Twitter/X. Across 12 temporal windows, findings are consistent with all three hypotheses and reveal Toxic Unity: behavioral homogenization is strongly inversely associated with collective toxicity (r = −0.8073, p < 0.01, R² = 0.652). This association is mediated through a Social→Ideology→Behavior pathway (βindirect = 0.139, 95% CI [0.011, 0.267], p < 0.05), suggesting ideological alignment, not direct interaction, is the stronger correlate. MBHF advances collective action theory, offers a replicable multilayer tool, and informs platform governance in Global South contexts.
Recommended Citation
Agarwal, Nitin and Falade, Tope Christopher Christopher, "Toxic Unity: Behavioral Homogenization and the Inverse Toxicity-Cohesion Mechanism in Protest Movements" (2026). PACIS 2026 Proceedings. 18.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/pacis2026/ai_ethic/ai_ethic/18
Toxic Unity: Behavioral Homogenization and the Inverse Toxicity-Cohesion Mechanism in Protest Movements
Protest movements shape political life, yet the mechanisms linking collective toxicity to behavioral homogenization remain theoretically unspecified and empirically untested. Existing multilayer analyses are largely static, temporally aggregated, and seldom contextualized in Global South protest cases. We introduce the Multilayer Behavioral Homogenization Framework (MBHF), grounded in Social Identity Theory and complex social contagion theory, applied to 147,529 tweets from 21,677 users during the 2025 TNI Bill protests on Twitter/X. Across 12 temporal windows, findings are consistent with all three hypotheses and reveal Toxic Unity: behavioral homogenization is strongly inversely associated with collective toxicity (r = −0.8073, p < 0.01, R² = 0.652). This association is mediated through a Social→Ideology→Behavior pathway (βindirect = 0.139, 95% CI [0.011, 0.267], p < 0.05), suggesting ideological alignment, not direct interaction, is the stronger correlate. MBHF advances collective action theory, offers a replicable multilayer tool, and informs platform governance in Global South contexts.
Comments
03-EthicsSocietalImpact