Projects |

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).