Social context moderates the effects of quest for significance on violent extremism.

Quest for significance theory (Kruglanski et al., 2013; Kruglanski, Jasko, Chernikova, Dugas, & Webber 2017) states that extreme behavior for an ideological cause is more likely under psychological conditions that induce a search for significance and social recognition. Two forms of motivation for significance have been identified; the quest for individual significance rooted in personal experiences and the quest for collective significance rooted in the perception that one's social group is humiliated and/or disrespected. Whereas past research has demonstrated associations between both forms of quest for significance and political extremism, there is little understanding of the conditions that moderate those effects. In the present study, we tested the moderating role of belonging to radical versus nonradical social context. Four studies were conducted in three different cultural settings: Sri Lanka (Study 1, n = 335), Morocco (Study 2, n = 260), and Indonesia (Study 3, n = 379 and Study 4, n = 334). Each study compared the responses from participants residing in social contexts that were more or less radical. Radical social contexts were identified based either on participants' belonging to known extremist organizations (Studies 1, 3, and 4) or residence within a locale that is a known hotbed for recruitment into terrorist organizations (Study 2). Across studies, we found evidence that radical social contexts strengthen the link between quest for significance-particularly collective significance-and support for political violence. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).