A qualitative study investigating perceptions of young adult bystanders on online hate speech on social media

Bystanders of online hate speech (OHS), or the expression of negative attitudes towards an individual or group with a certain group characteristic, can play a crucial role in the continuation of OHS. Therefore, it is important to understand what bystanders think, feel, and do when witnessing OHS. Perceptions of bystanders have mainly been studied in quantitative research, whereas insights on lived experiences seem to be missing. Such testimonials could help in understanding which factors determine, according to bystanders’ interpretations, their attitudes towards and behaviors in response to OHS. To this aim, in-depth interviews were conducted among 25 young adult social media users.