What shapes your beliefs? Who influences your decisions? And why do some ideas spread while others die?
Why do some ideas go viral while others vanish? How do influencers build audiences of millions? What makes propaganda effective—and what creates resistance? And as artificial intelligence transforms content creation, what becomes of human agency in a world of synthetic influence?
Influencers and the Influenced answers these questions through a com- prehensive framework integrating three powerful analytical traditions: memetic theory (treating ideas as replicators subject to evolutionary dynamics), persuasion psychology (the science of attitude change), and network science (how structure shapes spread).
This comprehensive book examines influence as both a psychological phenomenon and an evolutionary process. Drawing on memetic theory, persuasion science, and network dynamics, it provides a unified framework for understanding how cultural information spreads—from face to-face persuasion to viral content to AI-generated manipulation.
What this book covers:
• Memetic theory: Ideas as replicators subject to variation, selection, and inheritance—with quantitative frameworks for analysis
• Persuasion psychology: Cialdini’s principles, the Elaboration Likelihood Model, and the mechanisms underlying effective influence
• The influencer ecosystem: Taxonomies, skills, goals, and the political economy of the attention industry
• Hidden influence: State-sponsored operations, psychological warfare, and covert manipulation campaigns
• AI and the future: Synthetic influencers, deepfakes, algorithmic personalization, and influence systems beyond human comprehension
• Ethics: Distinguishing persuasion from manipulation; protecting autonomy; principles for responsible influence
Who it’s for:
• Researchers and students in psychology, communication, and media studies
• Marketing and communications professionals seeking theoretical depth
• Policy makers concerned with misinformation and information warfare
• Intellectually curious readers who want to understand the forces shaping belief and behavior
Building on over 30 years of the author’s work in memetic science, this book treats influence with the rigor it deserves—neither dismissing it as mere manipulation nor accepting it uncritically, but analyzing it as the fundamental social phenomenon it is.
