Political Polarization Research Articles

Invoking Identity? Partisan Polarization in Discussions of Race, Racism, and Gender in 2022 Midterm Advertising in the United States

Context: Media messaging matters for public opinion and policy, and analyzing patterns of campaign strategy can provide important windows into policy priorities. Methods: The authors used content analysis supplemented with keyword-based text analysis to assess the volume, proportion, and distribution of media attention to race-related issues in comparison to gender-related issues during the general election period of the 2022 midterm campaigns for federal office in the United States. Findings: Race-related mentions in campaign advertising were overwhelmingly focused on crime and law and order, with very little attention to racism, racial injustice, and the structural barriers that lead to widespread inequities. In stark contrast to mentions of gender, racial appeals were less identity focused and were competitively contested between the parties in their messaging, but they were much more likely to be led by Republicans. Conclusions: The results suggest that discussions of race and gender were highly polarized, with consequences for public understanding of and belief in disparities and policies important to population health.

Reputational costs of receptiveness: When and why being receptive to opposing political views backfires.

A fast-growing body of research finds that receptiveness to opposing political views carries reputational benefits. A different body of research finds that opposing political views and the people who hold them are seen as repugnant. How could it be that people receptive to opposing political ideas are viewed positively when the political opponents they are receptive to are seen negatively? In seven main (N = 5,286) and nine supplemental studies (N = 3,983 participants in online studies; N = 124,493 observations in field data), we reconcile this tension by arguing that the identity of the person one is receptive to determines whether receptiveness carries reputational benefits or costs. When the information source belongs to the opposing party, receptiveness to opposing political views often carries reputational costs. We find these reputational costs across both strong and weak signals of receptiveness, eight different political and social issues, and multiple types of prototypical out-party sources. We argue that these costs arise because members of the opposing party are frequently stereotyped as immoral, and thus receptiveness to their ideas is seen negatively. As a boundary condition, we find that the costs of receptiveness are pronounced for sources who are prototypical of the out-party and attenuate (or even reverse) for sources who are nonprototypical. These findings resolve a seeming contradiction between two distinct literatures in psychology, contribute to a rapidly expanding literature on the interpersonal consequences of receptiveness, and lay the groundwork for understanding novel barriers to, and ultimately solutions for, the lack of cross-party openness and political polarization. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Women peacebuilders in Colombia and new digital solutions

AbstractWomen all over the world are using information and communications technology (ICT) to build peace in their communities. Women are natural pioneers of these technologies because the networks they use daily are the foundations that build long‐term peace in their communities. This article discusses the relationship between gender and digital connectivity, investigates whether women have different needs when building peace versus when implementing peace, and uses ICT in peacebuilding in Colombia as a case study. The Colombian government has made significant strides in closing the digital gap, especially in rural areas, and women have taken advantage of ICT to facilitate the Peace Agreement of 2016. The implementation of the peace agreement and digital solutions, however, is posing new challenges to women, including vulnerabilities in physical safety and increasing social and political polarization. Colombia needs to strengthen its efforts to close the digital divide by providing communities with the type of infrastructure and training that will meet their needs. Further, gender‐based technical policy needs to be readdressed to incorporate strategies to combat the current violence women face when using ICT. Colombia needs to prioritize providing a digital state presence to help protect women peacebuilders and hold perpetrators accountable.

National Pride or Economic Utility? Attitudes towards Science in the Light of Political Polarisation 1

Abstract The paper deals with the political aspects of the perception of science. The relevance of the topic is underpinned, among other things, by the public policy significance of trust in science and the links between national science and national identity. The literature relates the perception of science to ideological positions on the one hand, and to partisan bias on the other. The research underlying the study investigated the relationship between respondents’ attitudes towards science and their political preferences using a representative questionnaire sample of 1000 Hungarian respondents. In Hungary, characterised by a high degree of partisan polarisation, we expected the influence of party preference rather than ideological position on the perception of science. A detailed exploration of attitudes yielded more nuanced results than assumed: those who identified themselves as right-wing were less pro-science in general, but the utilitarian perception of science was influenced by party preference in addition to education, i.e. voters of the current government expected more utility and economic returns from science. The perception of science was also influenced by the level of political information. The study also relates the impact of partisan bias to the reception of science policy measures of the Orbán governments.

Securing brand trust and reputation in an era of political polarisation and AI-driven disinformation

This paper analyses the seismic reputational risks now facing brands as two major sociotechnical forces converge — the rise of ideological polarisation and the emergence of AI’s ability to generate synthetic media impersonating organisations. It examines how brands have embraced polarised stances on social issues to build deeper connections with values-driven consumers, especially younger demographics like millennials and Gen Z. By adopting partisan positions. Brands also become targets for ideological attacks seeking to erode trust. Meanwhile, rapid advances in generative AI empower malicious actors to disseminate disinformation, attacking brands with harmful narratives, misinformation and disinformation on an unprecedented scale and realism to do financial and reputational harm. The paper provides an in-depth examination of both dynamics. It explores how younger consumers increasingly demand corporate advocacy on divisive issues, forcing brands to navigate complex sociopolitical fault lines. Taking progressive stances risks a backlash from ideological opponents ready to instigate reputation-damaging retaliation. The paper also details the exponential threats introduced by AI synthesis technologies like generative adversarial networks. It explains how even modestly resourced attackers could soon produce unlimited volumes of fake content, misinformation and disinformation to target brands across all digital channels and media types. To address these converging risks, the paper recommends that brands invest in capabilities including monitoring sociocultural tensions, technologically authenticating communications, establishing early disinformation warning systems, educating consumers on resisting manipulation, crafting proactive narratives, practicing radical transparency and testing defences. It emphasises the need for holistic ‘narrative intelligence’ combining data analysis, cultural discernment and human wisdom. With deliberate strategies focused on verification, transparency and continuous learning, brands can foster resilience and enduring trust despite inevitable disruptions. The paper concludes that competence in navigating partisan debates and AI deception will become a competitive advantage in determining which brands lead in this complex future.

Lessons from Germany for levelling up in the UK

This paper suggests how lessons from Germany’s national-level, comprehensively focused place-based regeneration (or levelling up) efforts could be applied in the UK. It draws the direct linkage between spatial inequality and the decline of large-scale heavy manufacturing industry at the end of the 20th century in Germany and the UK. It also posits that rapid deindustrialisation, poor-quality education and other indices of poverty and economic inequality have fuelled political fragmentation — including loss of public trust in government, national and civic institutions — in both countries. The paper explores and compares two sets of German redevelopment efforts over time, in the industrial heartland of the former West German Ruhr region and across the former East Germany, to assess their impacts on reducing political polarisation as well as bolstering redevelopment. It highlights which elements of these efforts have been most successful and why. The German experience, as described in the paper, clearly demonstrates that it takes decades to achieve measurable positive economic outcomes from redevelopment programmes. Political outcomes can also be mixed, even negative, if grassroots sentiment and public well-being are ignored or discounted in the process. In the former East Germany, despite huge transfers of development funds, grievances rooted in the economic and political dislocation of German unification in the 1990s have fuelled anti-establishment politics. The paper also examines how grassroots, philanthropic and private sector actors work alongside regional and federal governments in Germany in shaping positive political as well as socio-economic outcomes and how this might be most effectively adapted for the UK.

Theatricality and Totalitarianism. Case study

In my paper I shall approach the phenomenon of communist totalitarianism in relation to the theatricality developed by the inhabitants of the countries in the socialist camp, in a society under constant surveillance by the political police. At the same time, I shall look at the ways in which theatricality permeates and is reflected in the novels of the age, particularly in Norman Manea’s novel The Black Envelope, first published in Romania in 1986 in a censored version. In The Captive Mind, the Polish writer Czesław Miłosz devotes an entire chapter to exploring the forms of histrionism developed by the inhabitants of the Sovietized countries. Similar ideas are conveyed in an interview of Matei Călinescu, a Romanian-American literary critic and prose writer, who describes life under Ceauşescu’s neo-Stalinist regime as being governed by „Pseudo”. In this Orwellian universe the totalitarian, tyrannical fiction rivals literary fiction. The fiction-to-fiction relation between literature and the totalitarian world is significantly problematised in N. Manea’s writings.

FATHOM OUT THE NUANCES OF SOCIAL MEDIA LITERACY AND ITS PRACTICAL ALLUSIONS TO MISINFORMATION – A REVIEW

Digital media has become an integral part of our daily lives, connecting people from all around the world in a matter of seconds. In recent years, social media has revolutionized the flow of information and helped people to connect, share, and discuss things at their fingertips. However, this rapid exchange of information has also given rise to a concerning phenomenon – the spread of misinformation. "Misinformation" has led to a wide range of negative consequences, such as political polarization, social unrest, and erosion of trust in traditional media. This review explores the importance of social media literacy, its advantages, impacts, and effects, along with allusions to misinformation. The methodology includes a systematic search of literature in the databases from Internationally double-blinded peer-reviewed journals between 2016 and 2022, in English that also includes scientific articles. A total of 64 articles were obtained. A selection process of articles took place, applying certain inclusion and exclusion criteria, resulting in a total of 10 articles being selected. The findings signify that the conception of social media literacy has just started and more research is needed to identify its practical and theoretical implications. This is linked to the content and competencies, critical thinking, content, and context of the information, and the time and literacy level and fear of missing out on the user. Socio-emotional competencies, literacy level, and time spent stand out since social media is a frequent place of interaction between people. Thus, it is crucial to develop social media literacy skills to combat the dissemination of fake news and ensure a more responsible citizen and informed society.

Where is the Motivation in Motivated Numeracy?

AbstractIn a series of very influential papers, Dan Kahan argues for “the identity protective cognition thesis”: the claim that politically motivated reasoning is a major factor explaining current levels of polarization over matters of fact, especially in the US. An important part of his case consists of experimental data supporting the claim that ideological polarization is more extreme amongst more numerate individuals. In this paper, we take a close look at how precisely this “numeracy effect” is supposed to come about. Working with Kahan’s own notion of motivated reasoning, we reconstruct the mechanism that according to him produces the effect. Surprisingly, it turns out to involve plenty of motivation to reason, but no motivated reasoning. This undermines the support he takes the numeracy effect to provide for the identity protective cognition hypothesis.

Perceived Political Polarization and its Differential Impact on Political Participation: Evidence from Japan (2005–2019)

Perceived Political Polarization and its Differential Impact on Political Participation: Evidence from Japan (2005–2019)

The 11th: Politics, Polarization, and Partisan Change in a Southern District, 1972–2022

Abstract What can be learned from analysis of a single congressional district? This paper uses the experience of North Carolina’s 11th congressional district to understand the political changes that have defined the last half-century in the American South. The story of how this once politically inconsequential southern Appalachian district found itself in the middle of the national political maelstrom is, in many ways, the story of southern politics over the last three decade. Political polarization, strategic gerrymandering, the power of national political tides, the increasing urban/rural divide and the broader partisan transformation of the South that has remade American politics all are reflected in the 11th. In addition to uncovering new wrinkles in the story of southern partisan change, this paper defines and highlights the advantages of place-based Political Science.

Mapping the terrain of hate: identifying and analyzing online communities and political parties engaged in hate speech against Muslims and LGBTQ+ communities

AbstractThis study investigates the impact of X on political discourse and hate speech in Finland, focusing on Muslim and LGBTQ+ communities from 2018 to 2023. During this period, these groups have experienced increased hate speech and a concerning surge in hate crimes. Utilizing network analysis methods, we identified online communities and examined the interactions between Finnish MPs and these communities. Our investigation centered on uncovering the emergence of networks propagating hate speech, assessing the involvement of political figures, and exploring the formation dynamics of digital communities. Employing agenda-setting theory and methodologies including text classification, topic modeling, network analysis, and correspondence analysis, the research uncovers varied communication patterns in retweet and mention networks. Retweet networks tend to be more fragmented and smaller, with participation primarily from far-right Finns Party MPs, whereas mention networks exhibit wider political representation, including members from all parties. Findings highlight the Finns Party MPs' significant role in fostering divisive, emotionally charged communications within politically segregated retweet communities, contrasting with their broader engagement in mention networks. The study underscores the necessity for cross-party efforts to combat hate speech, promote inclusive dialogue, and mitigate political polarization.

Democratic Identity, Political Policing, and the Other side of the US-Canada Security Community

Canada and the US maintain one of the closest international partnerships in the world, but there are concerns about its future. Donald Trump's election generated anxieties about the rise of autarkic or authoritarian politics in the region. These worries persist as it remains to be seen whether the Trump administration was a temporary interruption to liberal governance or a signifier of more profound change. Canadian security scholars have contemplated whether an illiberal shift may disrupt the US-Canada security community. This article intervenes in these discussions by emphasizing the extent to which prejudices and political policing have fostered the community's emergence and operation. Archival investigation reveals that illiberal practices have proven reconcilable with a liberal identity throughout the community's development. Therefore, without dismissing existing concerns, we should be vigilant of the possibility that the security community may be internalized within democratic retrenchment, rather than corroded by it.

Analisis Penyebaran Hoax Di Media Sosial Dan Dampaknya Terhadap Masyarakat

The spread of hoaxes on social media has become a serious problem in society. This research aims to analyze the factors that cause the spread of hoaxes, the characteristics of hoax content, a well as their impact on society. The research method used is the study of literature and content analysis from various online news sources. The results showed that the main factors of the spread of hoaxes were lack of digital literacy., economic motivation, and political polarization. Hoax content generally spreads quickly, has sensational titles, and contains inaccurate information. The impact of hoaxes on society includes confusion, social conflict, and a decline in public trust. This research concludes that comprehensive efforts from the government, media, and the public are needed to overcome the hoax problem. This research aims to analyze the causes, patterns of spread, and the impact of hoaxes on social media on the community. The research methods used are literature studies and content analysis from various trusted sources. Patterns of spreading hoaxes generally utilize sicial media algorithms to achieve a wide reach quickly. The negative impact of hoaxes on society is very diverse, ranging from triggering social confilcts, affecting public opinion, to threatening political stability and national security. This shows the urgency of handing hoaxes comprehensively, involving the role of government, social media platforms, and the public.

Органы политической полиции Саратовской губернии в конце XIX – начале XX века: институциональные изменения, направления работы и специфика межгубернского взаимодействия

Introduction. The relevance of the chosen research topic is of lasting importance, since the place, role and importance of the political police is always of paramount importance in order to ensure the security of the state and its power structures. Theoretical analysis. During the second half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th centuries, the gendarmerie bodies underwent gradual reform and serious intradepartmental and interregional reorganization. As a result, by the beginning of the last century, two main, interconnected and interacting structures of the political police operated in the Russian Empire – a separate corps of gendarmes (with a network of provincial gendarmerie departments and gendarmerie police departments of railways) and Security (search) departments (points). Empirical analysis. It was revealed that the political police bodies operating in the early twentieth century on the territory of the Saratov province (Saratov Provincial Gendarmerie Department, Tambov-Ural Gendarmerie Police Department of Railways, Saratov Security Department and Volga Region Security Department), which underwent organizational and structural changes in accordance with the directive acts of the authorities, purposefully performed their functions of search, covert supervision and surveillance of unreliable elements, inquiry and political investigation, as well as the execution of court sentences in political cases. Results. The process of reorganization and restructuring of political police bodies at the local level, in particular, in the Saratov province, testifies to the contradictory and ambiguous nature of the ongoing transformations. The empirical material studied shows that the authorities of late imperial Russia failed, to the necessary extent, to create an effective system of political investigation, which was supposed to resist the rapidly developing revolutionary movement at the beginning of the 20th century.

Voter emotional responses and voting behaviour in the 2020 US presidential election

ABSTRACT Political polarisation in the United States offers opportunities to explore how beliefs about candidates – that they could save or destroy American society – impact people’s thoughts, feelings, and behaviour. Participants forecast their future emotional responses to the contentious 2020 U.S. presidential election, and reported their actual responses after the election outcome. Stronger beliefs about candidates were associated with forecasts of greater emotion in response to the election, but the strength of this relationship differed based on candidate preference. Trump supporters’ forecast happiness more strongly related to beliefs that their candidate would save society than for Biden supporters. Biden supporters’ forecast anger and fear were more strongly related to beliefs that Trump would destroy society than vice versa. These forecasts mattered: predictions of lower happiness and greater anger if the non-preferred candidate won predicted voting, with Biden supporters voting more than Trump supporters. Generally, participants forecast more emotion than they experienced, but beliefs altered this tendency. Stronger beliefs predicted experiencing more happiness or more anger and fear about the election outcome than had been forecast. These findings have implications for understanding the mechanisms through which political polarisation and rhetoric can influence voting behaviour.

Polarization and health-related behaviours and outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic: a systematic review protocol.

The COVID-19 pandemic affected people's health behaviours and health outcomes. Political or affective polarization could be associated with health behaviours such as mask-wearing or vaccine uptake and with health outcomes, e.g., infection or mortality rate. Political polarization relates to divergence or spread of ideological beliefs and affective polarization is about dislike between people of different political groups, such as ideologies or parties. The objectives of this study are to investigate and synthesize evidence about associations between both forms of polarization and COVID-19 health behaviours and outcomes. In this systematic review, we will include quantitative studies that assess the relationship between political or affective polarization and COVID-19-related behaviours and outcomes, including adherence to mask mandates, vaccine uptake, infection and mortality rate. We will use a predetermined strategy to search EMBASE, Medline (Ovid), Cochrane Library, Cochrane COVID-19 Study Register, Global Health (Ovid), PsycInfo (Ovid), Web of Science, CINAHL, EconLit (EBSCOhost), WHO COVID-19 Database, iSearch COVID-19 Portfolio (NIH) and Google Scholar from 2019 to September 8 2023. One reviewer will screen unique records according to eligibility criteria. A second reviewer will verify the selection. Data extraction, using pre-piloted electronic forms, will follow a similar process. The risk of bias of the included studies will be assessed using the JBI checklist for analytical cross sectional studies. We will summarise the included studies descriptively and examine the heterogeneity between studies. Quantitative data pooling might not be feasible due to variations in measurement methods used to evaluate exposure, affective and political polarization. If there are enough relevant studies for statistical data synthesis, we will conduct a meta-analysis. This review will help to better understand the concept of polarization in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and might inform decision making for future pandemics. PROSPERO ID: CRD42023475828.

Responsible innovation for addressing grand societal challenges: the role of social innovation, exaptation, and retrovation

ABSTRACT Numerous substantial challenges confront both individuals and society in the contemporary era. These encompass issues such as economic disparities, climate change, political polarization, and health crises such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic. These multifaceted challenges possess the potential to wield profound repercussions on the lives of individuals, business communities, societies, and the global landscape as well as to stimulate original patterns of responsible innovation. Addressing them necessitates a strategic blend of short-term remedies and far-reaching planning endeavours. Within the scope of this research, the manuscript elucidates the pivotal role of social innovation, exaptation, and retrovation as pioneering modes of responsible innovation uniquely suited to address the prevailing societal conundrums. Furthermore, it will explore the facilitative capacity of knowledge networks, positioning them as instruments that catalyze the implementation of these innovative strategies. Lastly, the article will deliberate upon the prospective trajectories within the domain of responsible innovation.

Partisan Panel Composition and Reliance on Earlier Opinions in the Circuit Courts

Does the partisan composition of three-judge panels affect how earlier opinions are treated and thus how the law develops? Using a novel data set of Shepard's treatments for all cases decided in the U.S. courts of appeals from 1974 to 2017, we investigate three different versions of this question. First, are panels composed of three Democratic (Republican) appointees more likely to follow opinions decided by panels of three Democratic (Republican) appointees than are panels composed of three Republican (Democratic) appointees? Second, does the presence of a single out-party judge change how a panel relies on earlier decisions compared to what one would expect from a panel with homogeneous partisanship? Finally, does the size of these potential partisan effects change over time in a way that would be consistent with partisan polarization on the courts? We find that partisanship does, in fact, structure whether earlier opinions are followed and that these partisan effects have grown over time—particularly within the subset of cases that we believe are most likely to be ideologically salient. Since legal doctrine is developed by building upon or diminishing past opinions, these results have important implications for our understanding of the development of the law.

Do leaders really matter? The failure of ambitions in Turkish foreign policy

The field of international relations is recently witnessing an inflation of attention toward political leaders and personalities. Yet, while political leaders mattered to understand foreign policy behaviors, the question is how much they do and under what conditions. This article argues that how leaders and personalities affect foreign policy is up to the variables that can be analyzed at the state and international levels. To illustrate this argument, I use the example of two strong, influential, and revisionist Turkish leaders: Turgut Özal and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The results point out that the main determinative on Turkish foreign policy on these leaders’ period is not their personality as argued. Instead, the main variables we should analyze are the presence domestic and international constraints such as dominant foreign policy actors, economic capacity, political polarization, and international conjunctures.