The ability of a group, or society more broadly, to hold together is central to social life. As the nature of the social unit varies cross-culturally and across political systems, this topic seeks to understand the nuances of shifting social and political cohesion in the face of diverse and evolving crisis situations. While part of the concern is a question of societal resilience , a related fundamental interest is in the endogenous and exogenous factors that bring groups together/apart, the temporal and situational nature of group solidarity, collective memory, and the relationship between cohesion and motivation toward a stated end. A comparative focus should be given to individual and group behavior within individualist and collectivist societies and how the scale of cohesion—micro-, meso-, macro-scales—influences the response and its sustainment in face of adverse conditions. New approaches to measure social, cultural, religious, political, and economic cohesion—as well as key intermediary variables, including expectations of (self-) performance, perception of status, trust, and morale—that can utilize existing data streams or for which data can be collected quickly and remotely with qualitative fidelity, are encouraged.
This topic seeks to develop or elaborate upon descriptive models that can be used to assess or predict societal cohesion, as well as analytical models that offer new insights into individual and group formation, particularly in response to crises. Approaches should employ empirical testing and explicitly consider the generalizability of findings across contexts. Particular value will be placed on approaches that can mediate between assessing individual commitment to anticipate the behavior of groups and organizations. This includes not only the resolve of national political leadership, but also those segments of the population who would engage in popular resistance— including armed combatants at different levels of organization and the interactions between these actors—and a group’s willingness to take actions, including deterring or preparing for conflict. Specific foci may include, but are not limited to:
Will-to-resist
• Generate frameworks and models of will-to-resist—both passive and active forms of resistance, including those leading to violence—that identify pathways of internal and external influence that may impact national political leadership, key populations sectors, and/or organizations of armed combatants.
• Consider how models of will-to-resist apply in cases of proxy or regional conflict. How does external support influence commitment to a cause of resistance and what types of factors shape the evolution of resolve? • How do potential third-party entrants (allies and partners) into conflicts influence will-to-resist of the varied parties involved? To what degree are political, economic, and military elites influenced versus general populations?
• In what ways do pre-conflict, early conflict, and protracted conflict influence will-to-resist dynamics?
Trusted relationships:
• What is the role of leadership and morale in sustaining cohesion and how does this vary by role? Does the role change based on social, cultural, religious, or political leadership?
• How do factors like well-being, inequality, status, and social division impact sociological distinctions between trust and confidence in relation to social and political cohesion? To what extent do these factors have different impacts on various types of crises?
• To what extent are relationships of cohesion within individual and group control, and what leads to breaking down or building up commitments to a particular cause?
• How does collective memory impact social cohesion and relationships in light of contemporary crises?
• What is the relationship between social identity and societal cohesion, and how does diversity of identities across different levels impact cohesion development and sustainment?
• How is cohesion repaired or reformed at the micro-, meso-, and macro-levels in face of and following a crisis, particularly one of adverse outcomes?
Technological impact:
• How does technology and evolving relationships with it impact cohesion? Does it do so differently in different quotidian and crisis contexts?
• In what ways do time and scale influence the extent to which technology influences will-to-resist and/or trusted relationships within/between/among coordinating groups?