Johannes Johansson |

The Emotional Foundations of Authoritarian Discourse: A Mixed-Method Study of Anger, Disgust and Fear in Online Discussions on News Issues

Thu, 31 Dec 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Manuscript in review.

This paper contributes a mixed-methods research design for analysing the emotional foundations of authoritarian discourse in online publics. By combining in-depth discourse analysis with longitudinal computational analysis of news-linked forum discussions from 2010–2024, it connects the contextual articulation of anger, disgust, and fear to broader patterns of topic association and temporal intensification. The paper demonstrates how qualitative and large-scale text-analytic approaches can be integrated to study authoritarian discourse as both situated practice and evolving communicative structure.

Frames in Thought and Schema Development: Hidden Sources of Stability and Change via Frame Content

Wed, 30 Dec 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Unpublished manuscript. Presented at the ICA Annual Conference, 2025.

The article advances a schema-based theory of framing, arguing that media influence operates not only through changing which considerations people prioritize, but also through gradual transformations in the meaning and structure of citizens’ frames in thought. Its research design combines two longitudinal experiments, open-ended survey responses, and computational text analysis to trace how framing effects unfold across repeated, shifting, affective, and choice-based exposure contexts. The contribution is both theoretical and methodological: it links framing, schema adaptation, and long-term media effects in a design capable of detecting subtle forms of cognitive change that standard closed-ended measures often miss.

Media Coverage and Long-term Effect Dynamics: Attribute Agenda-setting as a Process of Recency and Cumulation

Tue, 29 Dec 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Revised and resubmitted manuscript. Presented at the ICA Annual Conference, 2022.

The article develops a theory of dynamic media effects by showing how news influence depends on issue phase: strongest during initial formation and renewed salience peaks, weaker as perceptions consolidate. Its research design links a five-wave probability-based panel survey to multiple media-content datasets and estimates within-person change using RI-CLPM models, allowing the article to test when media exposure shapes public perceptions rather than only whether media and opinion are associated.

Frame Dynamics: Deficits and Opportunities: A Longitudinal Perspective

Mon, 28 Dec 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Manuscript under review. Presented at the ICA Annual Conference, 2021.

This paper advances framing theory by treating frames not as fixed textual categories, but as dynamic structures that vary across time, media contexts, and forms of presentation. Using a longitudinal dynamic topic-modeling design, it examines how issue emphases and lexical perspectives develop across a decade of Swedish news coverage. The contribution is both theoretical and methodological: it develops a framework for studying framing environments as temporally, contextually, and interactionally conditioned processes.

Activation and articulation of authoritarian attitudes

Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A project investigating how the media agenda and news framing shape the emergence and articulation of authoritarian attitudes. The research uses a multi-method design including panel experiments, focus groups, and automated text analysis to study how societal issues on the news agenda activate authoritarian predispositions.

Selected publication

M. Ekström, J. Johansson (2026). The Emotional Foundations of Authoritarian Discourse: A Mixed-Method Study of Anger, Disgust and Fear in Online Discussions on News Issues. In review.

Principal Investigator

Mats Ekström

Responsibilities

Managed and collected major decade-long datasets through web scraping of two major Swedish discussion forums: Familjeliv and Flashback.
Contributed analysis within the project’s broader mixed-method design.
Theoretical and conceptual development.

Funding

Funded by the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet).

The long-term cultivation of sociotropic beliefs

Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A project on whether citizens who get their news from different media sources adopt and cultivate different beliefs about society. By combining a four-year panel survey with longitudinal media content analysis, the project studies long-term effects of news media use on beliefs about antibiotic resistance, climate change, integration of immigrants, and unemployment.

Selected publications

A. Shehata, J. Johansson, B. Johansson, K. Andersen (2022). Climate Change Frame Acceptance and Resistance: Extreme Weather, Consonant News, and Personal Media Orientations. Mass Communication and Society, 25(1), 51–76.
K. Andersen, J. Johansson, B. Johansson, A. Shehata (2022). Maintenance and Reformation of News Repertoires: A Latent Transition Analysis. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 99(1), 237–261.

Principal Investigator

Adam Shehata

Responsibilities

Analysis.
Research design.

Funding

Supported by the Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet).

Varieties of Media Effects (VARME)

Tue, 05 May 2026 00:00:00 +0000

VARME studies a broader variety of long-term media effects on citizens’ perceptions of societal problems. The programme examines how media coverage and selective media use contribute to the initial formation, maintenance, reinforcement, temporary change, and lasting change of opinions over time.

Selected publications

J. Johansson (2026). Frames in Thought and Schema Development: Hidden Sources of Stability and Change via Frame Content. ICA 2025.
A. Shehata, D. Andersson, I. Glogger, D. N. Hopmann, K. Andersen, S. Kruikemeier, J. Johansson (2021). Conceptualizing Long-term Media Effects on Societal Beliefs. Annals of the International Communication Association, 45(1), 75–93.
J. Johansson (2026). Media Coverage and Long-term Effect Dynamics: Attribute Agenda-setting as a Process of Recency and Cumulation. ICA 2022; In review.
J. Johansson (2026). Frame Dynamics: Deficits and Opportunities: A Longitudinal Perspective. ICA 2021.

Principal Investigator

Adam Shehata

Responsibilities

Main PhD project.
Panel survey design.
Experimental design.
Dataset management.
Analysis.
Theoretical and conceptual development.

Funding

Funded by the European Research Council (ERC).

The Dynamics of Information-seeking Repertoires: A Cross-sectional Latent Class Analysis of Information-seeking during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 +0000

Published article.

Climate Change Frame Acceptance and Resistance: Extreme Weather, Consonant News, and Personal Media Orientations

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Published article.

Maintenance and Reformation of News Repertoires: A Latent Transition Analysis

Sat, 01 Jan 2022 00:00:00 +0000

Published article. Presented at the ICA Annual Conference, 2021.

The article’s analytical strategy combines latent class identification, transition modeling, and mover/stayer analysis with conditional estimation of repertoire membership on covariates, allowing the study to show not only which news repertoires exist and how stable they are, but also what predicts belonging to and remaining within them.

Conceptualizing Long-term Media Effects on Societal Beliefs

Fri, 01 Jan 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Published article.

Internal report 2018:5 – Self-expressed reason for party choice

Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Published report.

LORE projektrapport 2018:1 – förtroende för sjukvården

Mon, 01 Jan 2018 00:00:00 +0000

Published report.

Experience

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Presentations

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Teaching

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