John Drury (social psychologist)

John Drury is a Reader in Social Psychology at the University of Sussex. His core research is in the area of crowd psychology.

Early career

Drury completed his undergraduate degree in social psychology at the University of Sussex (1992). He went on to complete his MSc (1993) and PhD (1996) in Psychology at the University of Exeter, under the supervision of Professor Steve Reicher. On completing his PhD, Drury worked as a Research Psychologist at the Trust for the Study of Adolescence (later known as Young People in Focus) from 1996 to 1998, providing research-based evidence about communication between young people and adults. He joined the faculty at the University of Sussex in 1998, where he continued his research in crowd behaviour.

Research in crowd behaviour

The core of Drury’s research is on the processes of crowd conflict and psychological change in relation to direct action events. This research stems from, and contributed to the development of, the social identity tradition. His work includes research on the processes of crowd conflict and change in relation to anti-poll tax protests, anti-roads direct actions, anti-capitalist events, and football crowds. Along with his colleagues, Professor Steve Reicher and Dr Clifford Stott, Drury identified causes of conflict within crowd events, and how these conflicts can escalate into riots. This research expanded on the social identity theory and Reicher’s Social Identity Model,[1] and led to the Elaborated Social Identity Model (ESIM).[2] The ESIM challenges the traditional notion of the crowd as being inherently violent and irrational, and suggests that people in a crowd act in relation to their shared social identity.

More recently, Drury’s research has examined how participants may feel empowered through crowd experiences, and how such positive emotions might affect other areas of their lives. A large-scale interview study led by Drury found that the act of protesting itself can be good for you,[3] due to the feelings of encouragement and confidence emerging from experiences of collective action. The main factors contributing to the sense of empowerment included the realization of the collective identity and shared expectations of mutual support.

From crowd events to mass emergency behaviour

Drury also has research interests in the psychology of mass emergency behaviour (MEB). Early models of MEB suggested that in situations of collective threat, the generic reaction from people is one of mass panic. However, in the research literature there are many examples of rational behaviour when escaping threatening and dangerous situations, for example co-operation and helping behaviours. Drury’s research study carried out in the aftermath of the London bombings of 7 July 2005 showed that rather than panicking or acting selfishly, the majority of survivors acted with courtesy and respect towards their fellow survivors,[4] and in many cases also acted as the first responders to an emergency.

Discourses of crowd events

Pathologizing and/or criminalizing crowds (particularly working class crowds, protest crowds and mass emergency crowds) are commonplace, and such constructions impact on policy and practice. In his research, Drury has sought to problematize these dominant accounts of the crowd, and suggest a language for the crowd that recognizes and celebrates its positive role in the social world. To a certain extent, power is sustained through systems of meaning, and so Drury uses critical discourse analysis to understand, expose and subvert dominant discourses, therefore creating the space for ‘liberatory’ discourses.

Key publications

Journal articles

References

  1. ↑ Reicher, S. D. (1984). The St. Pauls riot: An explanation of the limits of crowd action in terms of a social identity model. European Journal of Social Psychology, 14, 1–21.
  2. ↑ Drury, J., Reicher, S. & Stott, C. (2003) Transforming the boundaries of collective identity: From the ‘local’ anti-road campaign to ‘global’ resistance? Social Movement Studies, 2, 191-212.
  3. ↑ http://www.sussex.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressrelease/media/media270.html
  4. ↑ http://www.sussex.ac.uk/affiliates/panic/IJMED%20Drury%20et%20al.%202009.pdf

External links

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