Generating Collective Social Safety in Times of Political Change: The Motivating Effects of Inexplicable Behavior

A model of the generation of collective safety in social connection is proposed. This model posits that not being able to make sense of the behavior of others functions as an alert that motivates people who feel more vulnerable to the actions of societal collectives to find compensatory reason to trust in others. In two separate studies, participants in the United Kingdom and participants in the United States completed surveys the day before, and after, the 2024 general/federal elections. Preregistered moderated mediation analyses revealed that when family/friends behaved more (vs. less) inexplicably, participants who felt more (vs. less) vulnerable to the political party in power trusted sociopolitical relationships more rather than less. Such compensatory affirmations predicted renewed trust in personal relationships and strengthened feelings of connection post-election, suggesting that inexplicable behavior can motivate vulnerable people to generate the safety they need to see during societal transitions.