A new book by NJIT Distinguished Professor Julie Ancis examines the psychological forces that sustain antisemitism, its effects on individuals and communities and evidence-informed approaches for confronting it.
Published by Wiley, “Antisemitism and Jew Hatred: Psychological Perspectives” brings together scholars and clinicians working across counseling, clinical, social and educational psychology. Its chapters combine empirical research, theoretical frameworks, historical analysis and lived experiences to explore antisemitism at the individual, group and organizational levels.
Ancis, a faculty member in NJIT’s Department of Informatics and founding director of NJIT’s Cyberpsychology program, developed the volume after years of studying diversity attitudes, organizational climate, culturally responsive interventions and the relationship between technology and human behavior.
She said the book addresses what she saw as a gap in the psychological literature and in professional education.
“Multicultural and diversity training in psychology rarely, if ever, addresses issues specific to Jewish people, and antisemitism is one of the most pressing of those issues,” Ancis said.
Her concerns about antisemitism within professional organizations, along with what she sees as insufficient attention to Jewish identity in psychology education and diversity training, heightened the urgency of the project. The resulting volume is organized around three broad areas: the psychological foundations of antisemitism, its contemporary settings and psychological effects, and approaches for combating it within psychology and other fields.
Examining How Antisemitism Persists
Historical and political scholarship can explain the events and institutions that have shaped antisemitism. Psychology, Ancis said, offers another perspective by examining how prejudice functions cognitively, emotionally and behaviorally—and how it adapts as its outward expressions change.
Psychological research can also document the effects on people who experience antisemitism, including anxiety, vigilance, fear displaying visible markers of Jewish identity and reluctance to speak openly about their experiences.
Understanding Jewish identity presents another important dimension. Ancis noted that Jewish identity can encompass religion, ethnicity, ancestry, culture and peoplehood, while Jewish communities themselves reflect considerable racial and cultural diversity.
“That combination of a shared peoplehood and rich internal diversity doesn’t fit neatly into the categories we typically use to talk about prejudice and identity,” Ancis said. As a result, she added, antisemitism can be misunderstood, minimized or omitted from broader conversations about discrimination.
The book also examines how longstanding forces such as conspiratorial thinking and propaganda continue to sustain antisemitism. Ancis argues that these forces have remained adaptable, appearing in new contexts and terminology even when their underlying patterns are historically familiar.
Old Prejudices, New Technologies
That adaptability is particularly evident online, an area Ancis has studied through her work at NJIT.
In a 2025 article in the Journal of Contemporary Antisemitism, Ancis reviewed scholarship published between 2009 and 2024 to examine how online antisemitism is defined, represented and detected across digital platforms. Her research found that online expressions frequently draw upon longstanding stereotypes while using coded language and multiple forms of digital media to circulate them more rapidly and widely.
“The underlying tropes and stereotypes are not new,” Ancis said, “but their digital dissemination is rapid, widespread and multimodal in a way that presents genuinely novel challenges.”
Her related research combines social science and computational approaches to examine how how social media influencers respond to online hatred through positive messaging and efforts to counter misinformation.
Ancis cautioned that technological detection is only one part of an effective response. Researchers must also determine which interventions influence attitudes and behavior across different platforms and audiences.
“Technological detection tools and human-centered, community-driven responses need to work in tandem,” she said.
From Research to Practice
Beyond explaining the psychological mechanisms behind antisemitism, the volume is intended to help educators, clinicians and organizational leaders apply its findings.
For clinical training programs, Ancis said, that means explicitly incorporating Jewish identity and antisemitism into diversity education and connecting that instruction with established ethical standards for clinical practice. For institutions, it means developing informed procedures for recognizing and responding to antisemitism rather than assuming that it will be adequately addressed through general diversity initiatives.
“If I had to distill the book’s practical takeaway, it would be that addressing antisemitism effectively requires deliberate, explicit attention,” Ancis said.
She also emphasized that combating antisemitism should not be treated solely as the responsibility of Jewish professionals and communities. The volume calls for informed participation by clinicians, educators, researchers and institutional leaders, supported by evidence and clearly defined practices.
“Meaningful change requires naming antisemitism explicitly rather than assuming it’s covered by broader diversity efforts,” Ancis said, “grounding that response in evidence and real protocols, and building shared responsibility for change across the whole community.”
