Creating the Real-World Changes We Want with the Science of Protest
August 21, 2024
A Q&A with Lisa Mueller, PhD
We are in the middle of a historic swell of activism taking place throughout the world. From Occupy Wall Street and the Arab Spring, to pro-democracy uprisings in China, Black Lives Matter, the Women’s March on Washington, and more recent pro-choice protests; folks everywhere are gathering to demand a more just world. Yet despite social engagement being at record highs, there is a divide between the activist community and the scientists—like Lisa Mueller, PhD—who study it.
In The New Science of Social Change: A Modern Handbook for Activists, Mueller highlights what really works when it comes to group advocacy, to place proven tools in the hands of activists on the ground—in the US and abroad. She shows how a working knowledge of social science can help activists implement more effective strategies to create the real-world changes we want to see. Beacon Press senior publicist Bev Rivero caught up with her to chat about it.
Bev Rivero: In your introduction, you write, “Activists should care about discerning cause and effect, because the potential rewards and losses of activism are enormous.” The New Science of Social Change is organized thematically by protest turnout, online versus real-world protesting, violent versus peaceful tactics, coalition building, and fundraising. What are some potential rewards readers might discover in your book?
Lisa Mueller: Readers will discover that the evidence-based approach that has powered remarkable breakthroughs in medicine, elections, economic development, and other high-stakes endeavors can apply to protests and social movements, too. Activism often feels very emotional, but it can be strategic at the same time. If we want our activism to really improve the world, we should consider which strategies are most likely to produce the desired results, not just those that feel right in the moment.
For example, chapter 2 explains that while we are evolutionarily hardwired to criticize so-called “slacktivists” who do little more than post about social issues online, empirical research shows that slacktivists can actually contribute in various ways to effective social movements, so seasoned organizers should welcome them into the struggle instead of shunning them.
BR: In your book, you discuss “performative protest,” which is often used disparagingly to describe certain efforts. How might readers reframe their thoughts on and discussion of these activities?
LM: While my book emphasizes effective action, it also stresses the importance of thoughtful action. Sometimes, slowing down to contemplate social issues can help people decide which causes to tackle and how they want to tackle them. Performative protest—in the form of, say, a shocking YouTube video, activist music, graffiti, poetry, or theatre—may not immediately move people to action, but it might stop them in their tracks, raise their awareness, and stir constructive emotions like empathy or righteous indignation. As neuroscientist Antonio Damasio said, “At their best, feelings point us in the proper direction, take us to the appropriate place in the decision-making space, where we may put the instruments of logic to good use.” Performative protest will not save the world on its own, but thoughtless action probably will not save the world either, and may actually do harm.
BR: You share that “[r]esearch on collective action also suggests that it takes less effort to mobilize people within your own social circle, whom you can easily contact and nudge into participating.” What might this look like for an individual seeking to get others to participate in protest or action?
LM: Yes, in general, we can more easily mobilize people we know, because familiarity allows us to “sanction free-riders,” which basically means giving people a hard time for not protesting. Your coworker, classmate, or neighbor will probably care about your cold shoulder more than a total stranger, and you can more easily exert social pressure on someone when you encounter each other regularly. However, while mobilizing your own network is relatively easy, it is only a first step toward achieving a major goal.
My book emphasizes that gathering a crowd is not enough; who is in the crowd also matters. If a protest only involves people from the same community, power holders can easily write off the crowd as a radical fringe. Diverse crowds are more difficult to ignore, because they signal that a broad cross-section of society cares about an issue. Needless to say, the most effective activism often takes effort.
BR: Lastly, what are some resources for those who finish your book and want to learn more about how “social science can be both scientific and radical.”
LM: I encourage activists to nerd out on emerging research about protests and social movements. One way to do this is by reading academic articles like those that I cite in the book’s endnotes, although those can sometimes be technical and dry.
Another approach is to form alliances with social scientists who can help to translate the latest research, or better yet, tailor their research and policy advice to the evolving interests of activists themselves. Anthony Fauci is an excellent example of this.
In the 1980s, protesters stormed his office at the National Institutes of Health, demanding faster approval for experimental HIV/AIDS treatments. Against the advice of his colleagues, Fauci invited the protesters to meet with him. Through repeated conversations, often over dinner in activists’ apartments, Fauci came to trust the activists and devised a plan to expedite drug trials without sacrificing scientific rigor. As a result of this close partnership, the sickest patients gained access to life-extending drugs and HIV ceased to be the death sentence it once was. Protesters sometimes chant “People power, not ivory tower!” but this story illustrates how great things can happen when people power and ivory tower scientists join forces.
About the Authors
Bev Rivero is senior publicist at Beacon Press. Before joining Beacon in 2021, Bev was the communications and marketing manager at the National Book Foundation, where she worked on the National Book Awards, promoted the Foundation’s public and educational programs, and led all social media and marketing campaigns. Prior to NBF, she was in publicity at the New Press for six years, where she worked with authors committed to social justice, including Paul Butler, Michelle Alexander, and many more. She has extensive experience promoting nonfiction and tailoring outreach campaigns that resonate with activists and change-makers. Bev is a NYC-based graduate of Johns Hopkins University, ardent supporter of indie presses, and a graphic designer.
Lisa Mueller, PhD, is associate professor of Political Science at Macalaster College, where she served as Director of African Studies from 2019 to 2020. Her first book, Political Protest in Contemporary Africa (Cambridge University Press 2018), received an honorable mention for Best Book of the Year from the African Politics Conference Group. She is a contributor to the Washington Post, and the author of The Science of Social Change: A Modern Handbook for Activists.