Jonas R. Kunst is Professor of Communication at BI Norwegian Business School and Professor of Cultural and Community Psychology at the University of Oslo. His research examines misinformation and conspiracy theories, acculturation, violent extremism, and the psychological implications of artificial intelligence. He is Editor-in-Chief of advances.in/psychology and Consulting Editor for the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. His work has been published in Science, Nature Communication, PNAS, Psychological Science, and other leading journals. He has received the Janet Taylor Spence Award and Rising Star designation from the Association for Psychological Science, and is a Fellow of APS and SESP.
About me
As a Professor of Communication and Cultural and Community Psychology located in Oslo, Norway, my work is dedicated to understanding the social and psychological forces that shape how we live together in increasingly diverse and digital societies. My research adopts a broad lens, spanning from the dynamics of intercultural relations to the psychology of extremism and the impact of artificial intelligence on democracy.
My primary research interests include:
Extremism and Misinformation
A significant portion of my work focuses on the psychological roots of radicalization, conspiracy theories, and the “threat landscape” that drives violent extremism. I also examine the role of AI and social media swarms in threatening democratic processes.
Acculturation and Intercultural Relations
I investigate how majority and minority groups adapt to one another, challenging traditional views by, for instance, exploring how immigrants influence majority-group culture. This includes studying prejudice, Islamophobia, and the mechanisms of social exclusion.
Human-Animal Relations
I explore the psychology of meat consumption, specifically how people dissociate meat from its animal origins to navigate moral conflict.
Academic Mentorship
I am deeply committed to academic mentorship and the development of the next generation of researchers. To date, I have had the privilege of supervising 16 B.A. students, 39 M.A. students, 7 Ph.D. candidates, and 4 Post-doctoral researchers. My work has been recognized by the Association for Psychological Science and the Society of Experimental Social Psychology, among others.
Professor II (20% position)
Professor
Professor
Associate Professor
Post-doc
Post-doc
PhD, Social Psychology
Fulbright Visiting Scholar
M.Phil. Cultural, Community and Social Psychology
B.A. General Psychology
Frequently Asked Questions
Research by Jonas R. Kunst and colleagues has shown that loneliness experienced during the teenage years is a significant predictor of conspiracy mentality later in life. This finding, which received wide media coverage from outlets including NRK and Yahoo News, suggests that social isolation during formative years can make individuals more susceptible to conspiratorial thinking as adults—with implications for both prevention and public health.
A 2026 study published in Science, co-authored by Jonas R. Kunst as the senior author alongside leading researchers from institutions including Oxford, MIT, NYU, Harvard, and Stanford, warns that next-generation AI systems capable of forming autonomous swarms on social media represent a qualitatively new threat to democratic processes. These swarms can mimic human behavior, coordinate harassment campaigns, and manipulate public discourse at scale. The research outlines policy and platform interventions needed to address the threat before it becomes unmanageable.
Jonas R. Kunst is one of the leading researchers on acculturation psychology in the Nordic context. Based in Oslo, his work challenges traditional models by examining not only how immigrants adapt, but how majority populations are influenced by cultural diversity. His research covers prejudice, Islamophobia, and the social exclusion mechanisms that affect intercultural relations. He has received the Otto Klineberg Award from SPSSI and the Rae and Dan Landis Dissertation Award from the International Academy for Intercultural Research for this work.
Jonas R. Kunst actively collaborates with researchers internationally. He is affiliated with both BI Norwegian Business School and the University of Oslo, and has worked with scholars at Harvard, Yale, Cambirdge, Max Planck, Oxford, NYU, and many other institutions. His lab has supervised 7 PhD candidates and 4 postdoctoral researchers. He currently offers research internships for students through the Erasmus+ program. For collaboration inquiries, use the contact page.
Jonas R. Kunst's research on human-animal relations examines the so-called "meat paradox" — how people who care about animal welfare continue to eat meat by psychologically dissociating the product from the living animal. This work has been covered by Vice, Aftenposten, and Psychologie Heute, and provides insights into how cognitive dissonance operates in everyday moral decision-making.