Understanding public responses to counter-protests disrupting social change movements

Protests advocating for progressive social change sometimes face opposition from counter-protests defending the status quo – but how do these clashes shape public opinion? In this research, we investigated whether and how counter-protests influence support for social change. We conducted five survey studies using correlational and experimental designs in different socio-political contexts: pro-democracy Hong Kong solidarity protests (Study 1: N = 311 students in Australia), Thai anti-monarchy protests (Study 2: N = 269 Thais), U.S. immigrant rights protests (Study 3: N = 381 U.S. Americans) and Australian environmental protests (Study 4A: N = 129 Australians, Study 4B: N = 268 Australians). Overall, we found evidence that social change protests disrupted by a violent counter-protest heightened concerns that the counter-protesters were suppressing the initial protesters’ expressions of free speech. This in turn was associated with greater sympathy towards protests for social change. Although counter-protests often aim to undermine a cause, our findings suggest their actions might ironically promote more public concern for social change protesters. This research has implications for understanding protest and counter-protest dynamics: it highlights the importance of considering public opinion beyond a single protest context and the role of public attitudes in driving social change.