research-article

Atheists versus Theists: Religious Polarisation in Arab Online Communities

Authors:

Youssef Al Hariri,

Maria K. WoltersAuthors Info & Claims

Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, Volume 5, Issue CSCW2

Article No.: 361, Pages 1 - 28

https://doi.org/10.1145/3479505

Published: 18 October 2021 Publication History

Abstract

In this study, we investigate the extent of polarisation among theist versus atheist groups on Arab Twitter and their networks. We find four main self-identified groups of Arab users that can be distinguished by different attitudes to religion. In addition to Atheists and Theists, there are Rationalists, who promote rational thinking regardless of religious affiliation, and Tanweeri, who promote religious reforms. Through a keyword search of Twitter account handles and biographies, we identified 2,673 active, public Twitter accounts that clearly state whether they are Atheists, Theists, Tanweeri or Rationalists and analysed the interactions among themselves and the accounts that are followed, retweeted, or mentioned the most in their networks. Depending on the network analysed, we found between four and seven sub-communities that highlight the rich socio-cultural context in which discussions of religion, non-religion, and religious reform unfold. While there was clear online polarisation between atheists and theists, Rationalist and Tanweeri accounts are spread among the two polarised sides, acting as natural bridges. We also found a clear separation between Arab atheists who engage with Arab accounts promoting atheism and those who primarily engage with Western accounts promoting atheism. We discuss implications for the study of religious debate and religious polarisation on social media.

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Cited By

Azedi A(2025)Religious Trends among Arab Muslims, 2010–2022: Continued Revival, Polarization, or Burgeoning Secularization?International Journal of Comparative Sociology10.1177/00207152251319750Online publication date: 21-Feb-2025
https://doi.org/10.1177/00207152251319750
Das DGandhi DSemaan B(2024)Reimagining Communities through Transnational Bengali Decolonial Discourse with YouTube Content CreatorsProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36869008:CSCW2(1-36)Online publication date: 8-Nov-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3686900
Aduragba OYu JCristea A(2023)Religion and Spirituality on Social Media in the Aftermath of the Global Pandemic2023 IEEE International Conference on Big Data (BigData)10.1109/BigData59044.2023.10386754(5704-5713)Online publication date: 15-Dec-2023
https://doi.org/10.1109/BigData59044.2023.10386754
Show More Cited By

Index Terms

Atheists versus Theists: Religious Polarisation in Arab Online Communities
1. Human-centered computing
  1. Collaborative and social computing
    1. Collaborative and social computing design and evaluation methods
      1. Social network analysis
    2. Collaborative and social computing theory, concepts and paradigms
      1. Social media
      2. Social networks
2. Social and professional topics
  1. User characteristics
    1. Cultural characteristics
    2. Religious orientation

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cover image Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction

Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction Volume 5, Issue CSCW2

CSCW2

October 2021

5376 pages

EISSN:2573-0142

DOI:10.1145/3493286

Editor:
Jeff Nichols
Apple Inc., United States

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Published: 18 October 2021

Published in PACMHCI Volume 5, Issue CSCW2

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Cited By

Azedi A(2025)Religious Trends among Arab Muslims, 2010–2022: Continued Revival, Polarization, or Burgeoning Secularization?International Journal of Comparative Sociology10.1177/00207152251319750Online publication date: 21-Feb-2025
https://doi.org/10.1177/00207152251319750
Das DGandhi DSemaan B(2024)Reimagining Communities through Transnational Bengali Decolonial Discourse with YouTube Content CreatorsProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/36869008:CSCW2(1-36)Online publication date: 8-Nov-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3686900
Aduragba OYu JCristea A(2023)Religion and Spirituality on Social Media in the Aftermath of the Global Pandemic2023 IEEE International Conference on Big Data (BigData)10.1109/BigData59044.2023.10386754(5704-5713)Online publication date: 15-Dec-2023
https://doi.org/10.1109/BigData59044.2023.10386754
Bjørn PMenendez-Blanco MBorsotti VBjørn PMenendez-Blanco MBorsotti V(2022)Equity & InclusionDiversity in Computer Science10.1007/978-3-031-13314-5_7(77-96)Online publication date: 13-Oct-2022
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13314-5_7

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