CVEK

Today’s young generation is coming of age in a climate of shifting certainties, acute social polarization, and the ubiquitous pull of digital platforms. This comprehensive review synthesizes and maps how research teams across Slovakia have examined youth radicalisation and extremism in recent years.

Bringing together previously fragmented findings, the study unpacks the underlying social and psychological roots that drive young people toward extremist ideologies:

Values, Well-Being, and Worldviews: How Slovak youth navigate life satisfaction, the growing epidemic of loneliness, their low trust in institutions, and their evolving—often fragile—attitudes toward democratic principles and social diversity.

Push and Pull Factors: What alienates young people from mainstream society and what draws them toward radical groups and authoritarian certainty—spanning troubled family dynamics and peer pressure to regional disparities, school climate, and a pervasive feeling of being dismissed by adults.

The Digital Frontier: The mechanisms of online radicalisation, shedding light on lesser-discussed dynamics such as recruitment through gaming channels and Discord, the rise of the misogynistic “manosphere,” the desensitizing effect of cynical meme culture, and the casual consumption of extreme violence (gore).

Providing an evidence-based foundation, this publication is designed as a vital resource for policymakers, local authorities, educators, and youth practitioners working to build meaningful, proactive prevention strategies across both the physical and digital spheres.

he study is part of the project ‘Youth and Radicalisation – Data and Experiences as a Foundation for Better Prevention‘, implemented with the support of the Orange Foundation.