The Psychology of Political Polarization was inspired by the notion that, to understand the momentum of radical political movements, it is important to understand the attitudes of individual citizens who support such movements.
Leading political psychologists have contributed to this important book, in which they share their latest ideas about political polarization – a complex phenomenon that cannot be traced back to a single cause, and that is associated with intolerance, overconfidence, and irrational beliefs. The book explores the basis of political polarization as being how citizens think and feel about people with a different worldview, how they perceive minority groups, and how much they trust leaders and experts on pressing societal issues such as climate change, health, international relations, and poverty. The chapters are organized into two sections that examine what psychological processes and what social factors contribute to polarization among regular citizens. The book also describes practical strategies and interventions to depolarize people.
The book offers a state-of-the-art introduction to the psychology of political polarization which will appeal to the academic market and political professionals.
Author(s): Jan-Willem van Prooijen
Series: Current Issues in Social Psychology
Publisher: Routledge
Year: 2021
Cover
Half Title
Series Information
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of contents
Contributors
Chapter 1 The psychology of political polarization: An introduction
What is political polarization?
Why study political polarization?
Political polarization is a paradox
Political polarization is a problem
Intolerance
Motivated reasoning
Overview of the book
Note
References
Section 1 Underlying processes of political polarization
Chapter 2 When do psychological differences predict political differences?: Engagement and the psychological bases of political polarization
The psychological bases of political differences
How (and when) do psychological differences predict political differences?
Connecting needs, traits, and motives with belief systems
Engagement and the psychological bases of partisan and ideological differences
Engagement and the psychological bases of issue-attitude formation
Conclusion
Acknowledgment
Note
References
Chapter 3 The political mindset of supporters of radical and populist parties
Polarization in psychological literature
The Catastrophe Model of radicalism and extremism
Radicalization and issue position polarization
Populist ideology does not equal populist ideological attitude
Populism as an ideological attitude: old wine in a new bottle
The new political alignments in citizens’ mind
Political cynicism on the rescue for democracy?
Polarization needs to be overcome, indeed
Conclusion
Notes
References
Chapter 4 A psychological profile of extreme Trump supporters
Tribalism
Prejudice
Scientific evidence
Ingroup favoritism
Scientific evidence
Bloodlust
Scientific evidence
The information bubble
Scientific evidence
Material self-interest
Scientific evidence
Conclusion
References
Chapter 5 The impact of relational goals on political polarization
The foundational nature of relational goals
Relational verification of political attitudes and beliefs
Ideological differences in relational goals
Ideological differences in perceived attitude similarity
Ideological differences in actual attitude similarity
Psychological strategies for overcoming the consequences of political polarization
Concluding remarks
References
Section 2 The social context of political polarization
Chapter 6 Support for populist parties: Economic deprivation, cultural backlash, or status anxiety?
Economic deprivation
Cultural backlash
Status anxiety and the wealth paradox
Processes underlying status anxiety
In conclusion
Acknowledgment
Note
References
Chapter 7 The agreement paradox: How pressures to agree with others ultimately cause more societal division
Why is American society deeply divided?
The agreement paradox: how pressures for agreement produce disagreement
Cracks in the foundation of consensus: reactance and informational contamination
Reactance
Informational contamination
Evidence consistent with the agreement paradox
Business decisions
Political correctness norms: influence on stereotype communication and the rise of Donald Trump
Laboratory scenarios on negative group communication
The emergence of anti-PC public figures: the case of Donald Trump
Sustainability-supporting laws: the curious lack of influence of scientific agreement about climate change
Are certain types of people more prone to the paradox? The case of authoritarianism
Studies 1a–d
Participants
Measures
RWA/LWA
Divisive outcome measures
Control measures
Studies 1a–d: results and discussion
Study 2: methods, results, and discussion
Implications of the agreement paradox: how do we build agreement that lasts?
Pressure only as much as you have to, persuade as much as you can
Concluding thoughts
Notes
References
Chapter 8 Converging moral views in social networks and their impact on protest violence
Moral convergence in social networks
Moralization and protest violence
Moral convergence and protest violence
Implications
References
Chapter 9 Can the partisan divide in climate change attitudes be bridged?: A review of experimental interventions
Alternative climate facts
Interventions targeting emotions
Negative emotions
Positive emotions
What works, and for whom?
Psychological distance
What works, and for whom?
Scientific consensus
What works, and for whom?
Policy framing
Emphasis frames
Source frames
What works, and for whom?
Other interventions
Health
Morality
Economy and national security
Summary: what interventions work, and for whom?
References
Index
