A sweeping review of 359 studies reveals that academic research on Muslims and social media is booming but biased—obsessed with conflict, reliant on digital footprints, and missing the voices of actual users. Here’s what we’re not seeing.
When you think of Muslims on social media, what comes to mind? For many, the algorithm might serve up polarizing headlines: extremist propaganda, Islamophobic hate speech, or political conflict. A new, comprehensive study suggests that this skewed narrative isn’t just a social media filter bubble—it’s a reflection of a significant gap in academic research itself.
A scoping review, titled “Muslims and social media: A scoping review,” published in the journal Information, Communication & Society, has analyzed every relevant study from 2010 to 2022. The findings, based on 359 academic articles, paint a picture of a research field in bloom but one that is curiously one-sided. While interest is skyrocketing, the vast majority of studies are “corpus studies”—analyzing tweets, posts, and comments from a distance—rather than asking Muslims themselves about their digital lives.
Led by researchers Göran Larsson and Erika Willander from Swedish universities, the review exposes a critical disconnect: we have immense data on what is said about Muslims online, but startlingly little on how Muslims themselves use platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook for community, faith, identity, and quiet daily life.
The Research Boom and Its Blind Spots
The data shows undeniable growth. Publications on this topic have surged, particularly after 2020. Indonesia emerges as the most studied country, followed by the United States, Malaysia, the UK, and India. This makes sense, given their large Muslim populations and high social media penetration.
Table 1: Where is the Research Happening? Top 5 Countries Studied (2010-2022)
| Rank | Country | Number of Studies | Notable Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indonesia | 34 | World’s largest Muslim-majority nation; high social media use. |
| 2 | United States | 32 | Focus on Muslim minorities, identity politics, and post-9/11 securitization. |
| 3 | Malaysia | 23 | Muslim-majority nation with advanced digital landscape. |
| 4 | United Kingdom | 17 | Studies on integration, extremism, and Muslim communities in Europe. |
| 5 | India | 13 | Research on Muslim minorities within a major, diverse democracy. |
Source: Larsson & Willander (2024). Analysis of 359 studies.
However, this geographical focus reveals its own gaps. Vast regions and significant Muslim-majority countries like Pakistan, Iran, Iraq, and Palestine are barely represented in the literature. In Europe, while the UK is well-studied, countries like Spain, Poland, and Sweden—home to growing Muslim communities—are severely under-researched.
The “About” vs. “By” Divide: A Tale of Two Narratives
The study’s most striking finding is the split between research about Muslims and research by Muslims (focusing on content created by Muslims).
- Studies About Muslims (40%): These often analyze how Muslims are portrayed, discussed, or attacked online by others. A overwhelming 70% of this category focuses on conflictual content—Islamophobia, hate speech, stereotyping, and terrorism-related discourse.
- Studies By Muslims (60%): This larger category looks at content Muslims themselves produce. Here, the narrative flips. A significant 88% focuses on non-conflictual use—how Muslims use social media for fashion (#hijabfashion), religious learning, community building, professional networking, and crafting personal identity.
This reveals a profound imbalance. Academic literature is disproportionately focused on the noise of conflict and hate surrounding Muslims online, while giving less systematic attention to the peaceful, creative, and mundane ways Muslims actually inhabit digital spaces.
Table 2: The Content Divide: What Are Researchers Actually Looking At?
| Research Focus | % of Studies | Conflictual Focus | Non-Conflictual Focus | What This Means |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| About Muslims (Portrayals by others) | 40% | 70% (Hate speech, Islamophobia, stereotypes) | 30% (Neutral or positive portrayals) | Research heavily emphasizes Muslims as targets of negative discourse. |
| By Muslims (Content created by Muslims) | 60% | 12% (Extremist propaganda, sectarian rhetoric) | 88% (Faith, identity, community, lifestyle) | Muslims’ own digital practices are largely peaceful and focused on everyday life. |
Source: Larsson & Willander (2024). Analysis of 359 studies.
“Within the category of studies about Muslims, it is more common to find works focused on conflictual sentiments or anti-Muslim content online,” the authors note. “However, within the category by Muslims it is more usual to start out from non-conflictual standpoints.”
The Methodological Problem: Studying Footprints, Not People
Perhaps the most critical weakness identified is methodological. A staggering 82% of all 359 studies relied on corpus data—scraping tweets, analyzing Facebook page posts, or studying YouTube comments. Only a tiny fraction used interviews (4%), surveys (6%), or mixed methods (8%) to engage directly with Muslim social media users.
This means researchers are often analyzing a digital footprint without knowing who left it, why, or what it meant to them. We can count how many times a hashtag is used, but we don’t understand the human experience behind it.
“It is only by engaging with the users of these services that we can answer when, what, and why individuals do or do not do something on social media,” the researchers conclude. Without this engagement, studies risk misinterpreting content and perpetuating a distant, data-driven view that misses nuance, intent, and personal spirituality.
The Path Forward: Listening to Lived Experience
The review is not just a critique; it’s a roadmap. It calls for a significant shift in how we study religion and digital life:
- Prioritize User-Centered Research: Future studies must employ interviews, surveys, and ethnography to understand motivation—why a Muslim woman shares hijab tutorials on Instagram, how a young man uses TikTok for Islamic lectures, or when online communities provide crucial spiritual support.
- Broaden the Geographical Lens: Research must expand beyond the current top five countries to include diverse Muslim experiences in Africa, the Middle East, and under-studied parts of Europe.
- Balance the Narrative: While studying online hate is crucial, academics must intentionally amplify research on the non-conflictual, positive, and normative ways Muslims use social media. This includes faith practice, identity negotiation, social activism, and creative expression.
- Understand “Lived Religion”: Moving beyond textual analysis to a “lived religion” approach—as championed by scholars like Nancy Ammerman—would reveal how digital and physical religious lives blend. How does a prayer app fit into a daily routine? How does an online Quran study group impact local community bonds?
Conclusion: Beyond the Algorithm’s Bias
This comprehensive review holds up a mirror to academia, and the reflection should give us pause. The overwhelming focus on conflict and the reliance on detached data analysis mean the rich, complex, and predominantly peaceful digital lives of over a billion Muslims are being systematically undervalued in research.
Social media, for Muslims as for everyone, is a space of contradiction—it can amplify both hate and healing, polarization and community. To truly understand its impact, researchers must log off the data-scraping tools and start listening to the people behind the profiles. The story of Islam in the digital age isn’t just in the tweets; it’s in the hearts and minds of the users. It’s time our research caught up.
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