Cultural traits—the information, beliefs, behaviors, customs, and practices that shape the character of a population—are influenced by conformity, the tendency to align with others, or anti-conformity, the choice to deliberately diverge. A new way to model this dynamic interplay could ultimately help explain societal phenomena like political polarization, cultural trends, and the spread of misinformation.
Mathematical model shows how conformity influences cultural trends and polarization
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Political commentators, academics and others have been wringing their hands over threats to democracy in recent years. A new study helps us better understand one of the possible driving forces behind the erosion of democratic [...]
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Social media has become a key space for young people to experiment with their political voice and to hone it through interaction with others. In “Not Your Parents’ Politics,” authors Ioana Literat, a professor of [...]
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A new international study on public trust in science, conducted across 68 countries, has found that most people trust scientists and believe they should be more involved in society and policymaking. Further, a majority of [...]
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In his farewell address, outgoing US President Joe Biden warned “an oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy.”This post was originally published on this [...]
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Why do social injustices and ecological harms persist despite the powerful social movements that have arisen throughout history to counter them?This post was originally published on this site
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Research led by the University of Cambridge, in collaboration with Nottingham Trent University, raises serious concerns about bias in the UK criminal justice system due to negative stereotyping of accents.This post was originally published on [...]
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A new article emphasizes the need for “safe zones” for researchers amid escalating geopolitical tensions. It uses the history of IIASA—established as a neutral ground during the Cold War—as a prime example.This post was originally [...]
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Mis- and disinformation have once again been named the top global risk of the immediate term in the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Risks Report 2025.This post was originally published on this site
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President-elect Donald Trump is entering the White House with an ambitious day one agenda of executive orders and policies, chief among them a mass deportation plan that would target millions of undocumented immigrants.This post was [...]
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Presidents need science advice. From climate change and pandemics to the governance of AI and the country’s nuclear arsenal, science sits at the center of a range of foreign and domestic policy challenges that reach [...]
