In recent years an anonymous internet subculture has bubbled its way into the mainstream. Incels, or involuntary celibates, are a group of self-identifying males who resent women for their lack of sexual and social status. But what began as an online support group has morphed into dangerous, extremist, anti-woman ideology.
In 2014, 22-year-old Elliot Rodger murdered six people in Isla Vista, California, before turning the gun on himself. In a chilling YouTube video, he explained that he had committed this murderous rampage to avenge himself against all of the women who had rejected him in the past. "I don't know why you girls aren't attracted to me, but I will punish you all for it," he said.
Since then, Rodger has become an iconic figure among members of the incel community, and his misogynistic ideology has been responsible for dozens of deaths in the U.S. and Canada alone.
Alek Minassian, who killed 10 people and injured 16 more in a van attack in Toronto in 2018, left a post on Facebook hours before the attack saying: "The incel rebellion has already begun...All hail the Supreme Gentleman Elliot Rodger!"
Incel ideology centers around the concept of the "black pill". This is based on a term used in masculinist communities, "taking the red pill", which describes awakening to the "fact" that women are vain and vacuous and select their partners solely on genetically determined physical attributes. The black pill goes one step further and rejects the possibility that anyone who does not fit into the stereotype of "ideal" masculinity could ever establish a romantic relationship with a woman.
Until recently, the psychological profile of the members of this community has received little attention. But a new study from the University of Quebec in Montreal, published in the journal Sexuality and Culture, has endeavored to shed some light on the matter.
"The 'incel mindset' is best understood as the product of a complex interplay between biological, psychological, and social effects," Stefan Stijelja, who led the study, told Newsweek. "Based on our results, we concluded that the psychosocial causes and consequences of identifying as an incel are difficult to discern: they most likely interact and reinforce each other.
"Poor social skills, lack of dating experiences, an absence of positive peer relationships, shyness, anxiety, autism, bullying, late pubertal maturation, and body image issues, can increase the probability of experiencing a lack of sexual activity. This may consequently contribute, to a loss of self-confidence, symptoms of depression, anxiety, loneliness, and suicidal thoughts."
Stijelja was quick to point out that not all sexually inexperienced adults fell into this category. "We know from the literature on asexuality that people can be perfectly happy and have good mental health without engaging in sexual activity," he said. "However, presenting sex as an essential component of a fulfilled life—as our culture tends to do— can pressure people into engaging in sexual activity: this can lead some to experience stress and, in the case of incels, exacerbate their feelings of hatred and resentment."
People in this position are vulnerable to radicalization from online forums that encourage these extremist ideologies. "By trying to understand their predicament and find social support and validation, this can lead them to join incel forums and embrace their misogynistic ideology," Stijelja said.
To understand the perceived benefits of joining this community, the researchers drew on the "3N" model of radicalization: Need, Narrative and Network.
"Involuntary celibates have an unmet need—a lack of sexual activity—and they are looking to understand the causes of their predicament," Stijelja said. "For some, the 'black pill' ideology provides a satisfactory explanation, or narrative, for their celibacy. According to the 3N model, once people adhere to a narrative they are likely to seek the presence of other like-minded individuals, forming a network that validates this worldview."
Data collected by the CDC in 2021 found that more than a third of high school students in the U.S. had experienced poor mental health during the pandemic, and nearly half had reported feeling persistently sad or hopeless during the last year. These feelings, combined with social isolation, can leave men vulnerable to incel ideologies.
"No one is born an incel, but rather, one becomes an incel—it is a social identity and not an innate one," Stiljelja said. "There are several online forums where former incels share their stories of how they stopped being incels. Therapy can help, but it is also possible to change without it.
"First, on a personal/psychological level, there is a need to deconstruct the negative thoughts some self-identified incels hold about themselves–that they are a 'beta male'—the negative thoughts they hold about others–that ALL women are ONLY attracted to 'perfect-looking' men–and the negative thoughts they hold about their future."
These three beliefs, known as Beck's cognitive triad, can also predispose people to depression, which is high among incels and can lead to further social isolation.
To combat the propagation of this culture, many social media platforms have shut down a number of incel platforms. Reddit closed r/Incel in 2017 after it peaked at 40,000 members. This has prompted members of the community to set up forums in spaces with less regulation where they can air even more extreme views.
"Spending less time on incel forums is an important step [to escape this ideology]," Stijelja said. "They are echo chambers where people get their distorted thought confirmed and we know that co-rumination can lead to emotional contagion and exacerbate depressive and anxious symptoms, and anger."
To help people escape from this community, it is essential that we develop a clear understanding of the psychology that propagates it. Stijelja said. "To the best of my knowledge, this is the first review of the literature on involuntary celibates, or Incels. It is important as there is a need for establishing an empirically driven understanding of this community and the psychological profile of its members."
References
Stijelja, S., Mishara, B.L. Psychosocial Characteristics of Involuntary Celibates (Incels): A Review of Empirical Research and Assessment of the Potential Implications of Research on Adult Virginity and Late Sexual Onset. Sexuality & Culture (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-022-10031-5
The byline of the Newsweek journalist who reported this story has not been included because of safety concerns.
Update 11/09/22, 12:06 p.m. ET: This article was updated to provide the reference details.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
