David Smith

Dr David Smith is a psychology Lecturer at Robert Gordon University, and the course leader of the Applied Psychology MSc (conversion). His research sits at the intersection of social cognition, culture, and contemporary social issues. His work explores identity formation, meaning and ideologies within modern sociopolitical contexts, with particular emphasis on how young men navigate gender, sexuality and mental health in online communities. His research is predominantly qualitative, drawing on interviews and online discourses to make sense of how values, narratives and grievances are nurtured, spread and weaponised in the digital world. Recently, he has focused on incel culture, masculinities, misogyny and media discourses relating to reactionary political movements. He has also supervised and co-authored research concerning the well-being of teacher educators that highlights in the impact of burnout and rustout. David's first book, The Incel Mindset: Entering and Exiting Inceldom was published in March 2026 by Palgrave Macmillan. It provides the first book‑length qualitative account of how individuals come to identify with, sustain, and later leave incel communities. He has also published widely in peer-reviewed journals, contributed to edited collections, and presented research at international conferences. Outside academia, he is commited to public engagement and has written for popular media, such as the Metro, Current Affairs and New Statesman, and performed a sold-out spoken word show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival based on his work on the manosphere.