Following violent conflicts in Vienna in 2024, a debate emerged regarding how social media use in connection with international conflicts fuels violent escalation in Austria. Social media accelerates the spread of information and can foster the cross-border networking and radicalisation of like-minded individuals. Strengthening democratic resilience requires recognising and rejecting extremist narratives. While media literacy efforts often target youth, adults (40+), who significantly influence young people, are often neglected. Research and educational initiatives for this group are essential.

The ECHO (Extremism and Conflicts: Mobilisation Potential and Online Opinion Formation in Austria) project addresses these challenges through empirical and analytical methods, starting with a multi-thematic quantitative survey on social media use and international conflicts in Austria. This goes beyond descriptive research, analysing the link between social media use, information processing, and radicalisation indicators, supported by qualitative expert interviews. A subsequent retrospective case study, using multi-method investigation of a public violent conflict, will analyse the dissemination dynamics of extremist content. Machine learning will categorise content (e.g., hate speech, polarising content). Based on these findings, tailored solutions, including materials and methods for de-polarisation and media literacy, will be developed. Expected outcomes include insights into social media use across age groups, identification of radicalisation indicators, and implementation of findings in practical prevention measures, policy recommendations, and resilience-building materials.