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Erik Lundberg
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Peer-reviewed article

Organizational Identity and Civil Society’s Responses Against the Far Right

2026Lundberg, E.Journal of Civil Society

What is this study about?

The study examines why civil society organizations operating in the same place and facing the same far-right actor nevertheless choose different ways of acting. Through a comparative study of three organizations in Ludvika, their responses to the presence of the Nordic Resistance Movement are analysed – from satire and open confrontation to dialogue, inclusion and other forms of engagement. The focus lies on how the organizations' identity and self-understanding affect which strategies they consider possible and legitimate.

What did we find?

Civil society organizations facing the same extremist threats can choose very different strategies. The study examines how three organizations in the same local context responded to the presence of the far-right Nordic Resistance Movement. The results show that the differences cannot primarily be understood in terms of the threat itself, but in terms of the organizations' identity and self-understanding. Organizational identity shapes which forms of resistance and action are perceived as legitimate and possible, and thereby helps explain why civil society's responses to extremism vary.

Why does it matter?

Civil society is often attributed an important role in defending democratic values, but organizations do not respond to anti-democratic challenges in the same way. The study shows that civil society's democratic role therefore needs to be understood in terms of organizations' different identities, missions and repertoires of action. This helps us understand both why resistance to extremism takes different forms and why the same political challenge can mobilize different parts of civil society in entirely different ways.

Citation

Lundberg, E. (2026) Organizational Identity and Civil Society’s Responses Against the Far Right. Journal of Civil Society

Research area

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