Research and Action on Social Polarization Team
Against a backdrop of increasing social polarization, hate crimes and incidents in Quebec and around the world, the Research and Action on Social Polarization (RAPS) team seeks to understand the social, political and psychological dynamics that fuel these polarizations and to support the development of effective prevention and intervention programs. Since 2016, the team has put forward transdisciplinary work supported by critical and ethical reflection and a solid articulation between practitioners and researchers from complementary backgrounds and disciplines.
In 2015, Quebec adopted a 2015-2018 government action plan to address the emergence of forms of violent radicalization associated in particular with political orientation, gender or religion. This plan involved the social sphere (health, immigration and education) and public safety institutions.
It was in this context that the RAPS team was formed (FQRSC 2016-2020 funding) and has since assumed a pivotal role in bringing together the majority of Quebec players and researchers in prevention and intervention on social polarization and radicalization leading to violence. The team has contributed to the advancement of knowledge in the field through work on the social and psychological determinants of violent radicalization in Quebec. It has also developed and evaluated innovative prevention, training and intervention programs, and implemented specialized clinical services throughout the province.
Among RAPS' achievements, the team's work has produced a first Quebec portrait of the risk and protective factors associated with the legitimization of violence against the Other and has shown the rapid evolution of the problem among young people and the heterogeneity between regions and age groups. This portrait has highlighted the importance of continuing to investigate, from an epidemiological perspective, the determinants of support for violent radicalization to continually inform the development of prevention programs. Theoretical work and systematic literature reviews led the team to distinguish primary prevention, which aims to transform social attitudes and representations, from secondary and tertiary prevention (understood under the term intervention), which is based on trajectory studies and is aimed at vulnerable individuals and/or those involved in extremist movements.
Research and Action on Social Polarization (RAPS) team
For its second cycle of work (renewal of FQRSC funding 2022-2026), the RAPS team, through its action-research approach and research programming, continues to focus on understanding the social, political and psychological dynamics that fuel social polarization, and on supporting the development of effective prevention and intervention programs.
The data shows that social polarization is on the rise in Quebec and around the world, and has been exacerbated by the pandemic, which has acted as a catalyst for inter-group tensions, exacerbating social inequalities stemming from systemic racism. The rallying around radical ideologies, fuelled by fears about the apprehended loss of privileges and freedoms and by resentment against social and political institutions, legitimizes violence and provokes an increase in hate crimes and incidents.
To help mitigate this escalation, the RAPS team structures its research program around longitudinal analyses that simultaneously capture the rapid social transformations of the national context and their local specificities. These analyses inform the innovative actions we develop and evaluate. The program for the second RAPS cycle is divided into 3 areas: (1) research, (2) primary prevention and training, and (3) intervention (secondary and tertiary prevention).
The RAPS team continues to rely on a well-integrated network of multidisciplinary researchers, clinicians and partners in education, health, community organization, law enforcement and the arts. It is consolidating its roots in Quebec's regions and extending its national and international reach in association with the Canadian Network of Practitioners in the Prevention of Violent Radicalization(CPN-PREV) and the UNESCO Chair in the Prevention of Violent Radicalization and Extremism(Chaire UNESCO-PREV).
CONTACT US
Cindy Ngov
To find out more about the team’s activities, please contact:
Coordinator, Research and Action on Social Polarization (RAPS) Team
CIUSSS du Centre-Ouest-de-l‘Île-de-Montréal
CLSC Parc Extension
7085, rue Hutchison
Montréal (Québec) H3N 1Y9
cindy.ngov.ccomtl@ssss.gouv.qc.ca