This review analyses the available research on how ideology is communicated by political and religious organisations and networks. As in the earlier reviews in this series, our understanding of ideology is deliberately broad, and includes, values, ideas and practices, in both religious and political contexts.
Academic research of relevance to ideological transmission has been carried out in diverse disciplines, and a thorough review of the concept requires working across a variety of fields in which different terminology has been used, for different ends. Key disciplines drawn on in this review have been political science, the study of religions, management and organisational studies, sociology, and media and communication studies. Two main communicative orientations have underpinned our review of the literature: (i) external awareness-raising by religious and political groups, and (ii) their internal attempts to influence members and supporters. Three analytical motifs have been identified as central for theorising how such groups transmit ideas, beliefs and values: propaganda, framing and learning. These are interconnected by the concept of ‘persuasion’, more specifically the active attempts used by external agents to persuade individuals.