Extremism has recently been described as one of the most pressing problems in contemporary society (Litter & Lee, 2023). The burst of extremism in today’s world has happened as the hodgepodge of different ideologies replaced the hegemonic ideological blocks of the Cold War (Ugarriza, 2009) and the rise of digital technologies catalyzed this change (Litter & Lee, 2020). In order to propose policies or interventions to reduce or eliminate extremism, it is necessary to understand its causes. What is clear is that extremism results from a multitude of causes, not just one. In this volume, we will focus on one specific contributor which has received relatively little attention in the past: social exclusion.

Can the experience of being ostracized – ignored and excluded – lead to people being more open to extremism? In this chapter we review the theoretical basis and experimental evidence for such a connection. According to the temporal need-threat model (Williams, 2009), ostracism is a painful experience that threatens fundamental social needs. Extreme groups have the potential to be powerful sources of inclusion and could therefore address these needs, thereby making them especially attractive to recent targets of ostracism. We also identify a set of factors that is theoretically likely to affect this link and review evidence for the opposite causal path: People are especially likely to ostracize others who belong to extreme groups. Together, this suggests a possible negative cycle in which ostracism may push people toward extreme groups, on which they become more reliant as social contacts outside the group further ostracize them.

This chapter presents a basic overview of ostracism, describing the reasons for its use, the situations in which it can occur, and the effects it has on its targets. Ostracism can happen in both face-to-face and electronic-based (e.g., internet, cell phones, and virtual reality) interpersonal interactions. The authors describe a variety of experimental research methods that have been used to study the effects of ostracism in both of these interpersonal contexts, comparing and contrasting the results of these different studies. Particular attention is paid to studies involving electronic-based interactions. Both immediate and long-term effects of ostracism on targets’ behaviors are discussed, focusing specifically on how people can be negatively impacted by being ostracized in an electronic-based interaction. The authors discuss how the nature of electronic-based interactions may affect people's reactions to ostracism in novel ways, providing greater understanding of the similarities and differences between face-to-face and electronic-based interactions. These findings are reexamined and explained in the context of virtual bravado – uninhibited behavior perhaps due to the anonymity provided by electronic-based communication. Finally, future directions of research are suggested for studying ostracism in electronic-based interactions, as well as people's general behavior in these types of interactions.

Introduction

There are several needs that are essential to our lives as human beings, and the desire to satisfy these needs influences our attitudes, behaviors, and interactions. Four of the most fundamental human social needs are the needs for belonging, self-esteem, control, and meaningful existence (Williams, 2001, 2009). Humans have a need to belong – they desire interpersonal relationships and meaningful interactions (Baumeister and Leary, 1995). Humans also have a desire to have reasonably high self-esteem (Leary et al., 1995; Tesser, 1988). Humans also have more action-focused needs; they desire some degree of control over their environment (Friedland et al., 1992), and knowledge that their existence matters to others (Greenberg et al., 1986; Solomon et al., 1991).

Humans rely on social interactions with others to fulfill fundamental social, psychological, and survival needs. These interactions provide basic survival needs for mating, food, and protection, but also provide the higher-order socioeconomic advantages of cooperation and reciprocity. Perhaps most importantly, however, social interactions provide individuals with a sense of belonging and recognition from their mates. Not all social interactions are pleasant, yet they still provide a sense of recognition, and in some cases belonging. For instance, aversive forms of interpersonal interaction such as bullying and overt forms of rejection still provide the individual with a sense of recognition and importance. Others must go out of their ways to bully, to overtly reject, and this expended effort alone is substantiation that one deserves recognition. However, another aversive interpersonal behavior deprives the individual of the sense of recognition and meaning: ostracism. We define ostracism as being ignored and excluded (Williams, 1997, 2001, 2007, 2009). Ostracism can occur through the physical banishment or exile of an individual or group to venues that are separate from the others. In this sense, extreme forms of segregation could be viewed as physical ostracism. Ostracism can also occur without physical separation. When society's actions communicate to individuals or groups that they are psychologically invisible and inaudible to the larger society, they become socially ostracized. By being marginalized in this way, they have no measurable impact on their society. They are not recognized, nor do they have voice.

INTRODUCTION

In a recent investigation into the causes of 15 school shootings in the United States, Leary, Kowalski, Smith, and Phillips (2003) found that acute or chronic rejection in the form of ostracism, bullying, or romantic rejection was a significant factor in all but two cases, and concluded that these rejection experiences had motivated many of the shooters to behave violently, either as a way of achieving retribution against the rejecting group or gaining social respect. Laboratory research has also shown that in certain circumstances, individuals who experience social exclusion are more likely to exhibit aggressive behaviors than those who are included (Twenge, Baumeister, Tice, & Stucke, 2001; Twenge & Campbell, 2003). As a rather extreme example (hopefully), a recent newspaper article (“Put to the Sword” in The Australian, June 23, 2003) reported on a Thai woman who killed her husband before slicing off his penis, boiling it, and then hanging herself. In her suicide note, she indicated that she was saddened by the fact that her husband had ignored her. Clearly, the act of excluding or rejecting another can have profound motivational consequences for the target, and these motivations may lead to antisocial and even aggressive behaviors.

Conversely, many individuals experience social ostracism on a daily basis without showing any signs that they are being driven by aggressive or antisocial motives (Williams, 2001).