Incels: A First Scan of the Phenomenon (in the EU) and its Relevance and Challenges for P/CVE, October 2021

Involuntary celibates (‘incels’) refers to men who believe they are unable to access consensual sexual relationships due to their perceived physical unattractiveness.

The online incel ecosystem contains violent misogynistic content, with members celebrating violence against women and societal-level attacks, such as the Isla Vista shooting in 2014.

Attackers who have committed mass atrocities either explicitly or implicitly as a result of incel “traits” are canonised into the suite of incel “heroes”.

This paper intends to demystify key tenets of the incel ideology and its relationship to violence, outline key challenges for practitioners in prevention and countering of violent extremism (P/CVE) in reaching this community, and offer recommendations for intervention providers and practitioners to increase and improve work related to this phenomenon.