The Israeli genocide in Gaza, conducted with the support and complicity of Western states that claim to embody democracy and respect for human rights, has brutally exposed the selectivity and hypocrisy underlying liberal notions of democratic freedom. This is evident in the multiple forms of repression activists for the Palestinian liberation struggle continue to endure. Such repression also problematizes the distinction that categorises Western governments as democratic while characterizing non-Western states that oppose the West as authoritarian and repressive in comparison. The erosion of democratic freedoms in the West also extends to the suppression of other dissenting movements, including pro-environmental activists and anti-ICE or anti-deportation protests. While the rise of the (far) right has undoubtedly intensified these dynamics, it is important to recognise that the repression we are observing is tied to a system of governance rather than specific political figures or parties. However, wherever there are hierarchies of power, there is also both repression and resistance.? 

Therefore, despite the detrimental personal and collective risks they face, people across the globe continue to resist under profoundly difficult conditions. How to make sense of this apparent paradox, and in what ways does repression shape resistance? Through which individual, group-based, and structural mechanisms does repression influence people’s readiness to engage in collective efforts to achieve social change? What practical and policy lessons can these insights provide to alleviate the adverse effects of repression on progressive political and social transformations? 

As social psychologists who have worked on repression and resistance for more than a decade and have collaborated closely through ongoing discussions and joint work, we have long felt the need to shed more light on the repressive contexts of collective action than is typically studied in our field. We also wanted to better understand the repression-resistance nexus beyond the individual level and within broader structural, organisational, and movement dynamics. We share a strong conviction that social psychology should have a more tangible, real-world impact by translating decades of research on social and political processes into insights that can help societies navigate conflict and pursue constructive social and political change. We have to point out how incredible it is, and symptomatic of the field’s biases and hierarchies, that despite the pervasiveness of repression and resistance across the globe, we are only now doing this research, how little we actually know, and how difficult it is to pursue this work—especially with both academic and political freedoms declining.? 

SIPR provided a space for these reflections. It allowed us to examine how repression and resistance interact across three levels: a) the individual level that social psychology typically focuses on, such as grievances, efficacy beliefs, emotions, b) the group level, including community cohesion and norms around resistance, and c) the structural level, such as laws and surveillance infrastructures. We brought together our different areas of expertise to strengthen what remains a fragmented body of knowledge. At the same time, we reflected on the practical implications of this work, not only for academics but also for activists confronting repression and for policymakers or authorities faced with the choice between repression and adopting more participatory and adaptive governance. 

Our review argues that even under the harshest forms of repression and violence, people continue to resist and leverage social-psychological and collective capital to withstand, adapt to, and undermine repressive forces. Research further suggests that in various contexts, while repression can temporarily stifle some forms of overt opposition, it rarely fully suppresses dissent over the long term and may instead amplify injustices, inequalities, and social instability, which in turn fuel further resistance.  

Our review calls for more integrative, multi-level, and globally informed research on repression and resistance, in a world increasingly shaped by intersecting and compounding crises and inequalities. Ultimately, we suggest pluralistic, participatory, and inclusive political systems as the better way to achieve more sustainable and just futures.  

Interested in learning more? Check out the full SIPR article: 

Ayanian, A. H., Adra, A., Zeineddine, F. B., Saab, R., Vollhardt, J. R., & Tausch, N. (2025). Collective action under repressive conditions: Integration of individual, group, and structural level research, recommendations, and reflections.?Social Issues and Policy Review,?19(1): https://doi.org/10.1111/sipr.70000