Intergroup Emotional Dynamics: An Analysis of the Characteristics of Affectively Polarised Spanish Voters

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5477/cis/reis.184.105

Keywords:

Polarised Voters, Spain, Partisan Identification, Ideology, Media, Affective Polarisation

Abstract

This paper describes the dynamics of affective polarisation in Spain, going beyond quantifying the phenomenon based on a scale and opting for an individual classification system that allows us to distinguish between groups of polarized and non-polarized voters. In addition, discriminant analysis is used to develop a profile of affectively polarized voters, and to determine the variables that characterize this voter. The main results indicate that voters polarize more with those parties that are ideologically further from their preferences, but within an ideological bloc, affective evaluations are not homogeneous. The study also addresses the impact of socio-demographic factors, ideological self-location and information consumption through social networks, television news and digital newspapers on affective polarization.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Almond, Gabriel and Verba, Sidney (1960). Civic Culture Study, 1959-1960. doi: 10.3886/ ICPSR07201.v2, access April 1, 2022.

Bassan-Nygate, Lotem and Weiss, Chagai M. (2022). “Party Competition and Cooperation Shape Affective Polarization: Evidence from Natural and Survey Experiments in Israel”. Comparative Political Studies, 55(2): 287-318. doi: 10.1177/00104140211024283

Boxell, Levi; Gentzkow, Mattew and Shapiro, JesseM. (2020). Cross-country Trends in Affective Polarization. NBER Working Paper No. w26669. Available at: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3522318, access April 1, 2022.

Chen, M. Keith and Rohla, Ryne (2018). “The Effect of Partisanship and Political Advertising on Close Family Ties”. Science, 360(6392): 1020-1024. doi: 10.1126/science.aaq1433

Crespo, Ismael; Rojo-Martínez, José Miguel and Mora-Rodríguez, Alberto (2021). “La falsa percepción sobre las creencias de los otros: ¿Causa o consecuencia de la polarización afectiva?”. Más Poder Local, 45: 75-94.

Druckman, James N. and Levendusky, Mattew (2019). “What Do We Measure When We Measure Affective Polarization?”. Public Opinion Quarterly, 83(1): 114-122. doi: 10.1093/poq/nfz003

Druckman, James N.; Klar, Samara; Krupnikov, Yanna; Levendusky, Mattew and Ryan, John Barry (2021). “How Affective Polarization Shapes American´S Political Beliefs: A Study of Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic”. Journal of Experimental Political Science, 8(3): 223-234. doi: 10.1017/XPS.2020.28

Fernbach, Philip M. and Van-Boven, Leaf (2022). “False Polarization: Cognitive Mechanisms and Potential Solutions”. Current Opinion in Psychology, 43: 1-6. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.06.005

Gervais, Bryan T. (2019). “Rousing the Partisan Combatant: Elite Incivility, Anger, and Antideliberative Attitudes”. Political Psychology, 40(3): 637-655. doi: 10.1111/pops.12532

Gidron, Noam; Adams, James and Horne, Will (2020). American affective polarization in comparative perspective. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Harteveld, Eelco (2021). “Fragmented Foes: Affective Polarization in the Multiparty Context of the Netherlands”. Electoral Studies, 71: 102332. doi: 10.1016/j.electstud.2021.102332

Harteveld, Eelco; Mendoza, Philipp and Roodujin, Matthijs (2022). “Affective Polarization and the Populist Radical Right: Creating the Hating?”. Government and Opposition, 57(4): 703-727. doi: 10.1017/ gov.2021.31

Hernández, Enrique; Anduiza, Eva and Rico, Guillem (2021). “Affective Polarization and the Salience of Elections”. Electoral Studies, 69: 102203. doi: 10.1016/j.electstud.2020.102203

Hetherington, Marc J. and Rudolph, Thomas J. (2015). Why Washington Won’t Work. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Huber, Gregory A. and Malhotra, Neil (2017). “Political Homophily in Social Relationships: Evidence from Online Dating Behavior”. The Journal of Politics, 79(1): 269-283. doi: 10.1086/687533

Huddy, Leonie; Bankert, Alexa and Davies, Caitlin (2018). “Expressive versus Instrumental Partisanship in Multiparty European Systems”. Political Psychology, 39(1): 173-199. doi: 10.1111/pops.12482

Iyengar, Shanto and Westwood, Sean J. (2015). “Fear and Loathing Across Party Lines: New Evidence on Group Polarization”. American Journal of Political Science, 59(3): 690-707. doi: 10.1111/ ajps.12152

Iyengar, Shanto; Sood, Gaurav and Lelkes, Yptach (2012). “Affect Not Ideology: A Social Identity Perspective on Polarization”. Public Opinion Quarterly, 76(3): 405-431. doi: 10.1093/poq/nfs038

Iyengar, Shanto; Lelkes, Yphtach; Levendusky, Matthew; Malhotra, Neil and Westwood, Sean J. (2019). “Origins and Consequences of Affective Polarization in the United States”. Annual Review of Political Science, 22: 129-146. doi: 10.1146/an- nurev-polisci-051117-073034

Jaráiz, Erika, Lagares, Nieves and Pereira, María (2020). “Emociones y decisión de voto. Los componentes de voto en las elecciones generales de 2016 en España”. doi: 10.5477/cis/reis.170.115

Kekkonen, Arto and Ylä-Anttila, Tuomas (2021). “Affective Blocs: Understanding Affective Polarization in Multiparty Systems”. Electoral Studies, 72: 102367. doi: 10.1016/j.electstud.2021.102367

Kingzette, Jon; Druckman, James N.; Klar, Samara; Krupnikov, Yanna; Levendusky, Mathew and Ryan, John B. (2021). “How Affective Polarization Undermines Support for Democratic Norms”. Public Opinion Quarterly, 85(2): 663-677. doi: 10.1093/poq/nfab029

Knudsen, Erik (2021). “Affective Polarization in Multiparty Systems? Comparing Affective Polarization Towards Voters and Parties in Norway and the United States”. Scandinavian Political Studies, 44(1): 34-44. doi: 10.1111/1467-9477.12186

Lagares, Nieves; Pereira, María and Jaráiz, Erika (2022). “La construcción emocional de la identificación partidista. El caso de las elecciones generales de 2016 en España” / “The Emotional Construction of Partisan Identification: The Case of the 2016 General Election in Spain”. Revista Española de Investigaciones Sociológicas, 179: 39-58. doi: 10.5477/cis/reis.179.39

Lau, Richard R., Andersen, David J., Ditonto, Tessa M., Kleinberg, Mona S. and Redlawsk, David P. (2017). “Effect of Media Environment Diversity and Advertising Tone on Information Search, Selective Exposure, and Affective Polarization”. Political Behavior 39(1): 231-255. doi: 10.1007/s11109-016-9354-8

Lorenzo-Rodríguez, Javier and Torcal, Mariano (2022). “Twitter and Affective Polarisation: Following Political Leaders in Spain”. South European Society and Politics. doi: 10.1080/13608746.2022.2047554

Mason, Lilliana (2015). “’I Disrespectfully Agree’: The Differential Effects of Partisan Sorting on Social and Issue Polarization”. American Journal of Political Science, 59(1): 128-145. doi: 10.1111/ajps.12089

Mason, Lilliana (2016). “A Cross-cutting Calm: How Social Sorting Drives Affective Polarization”. Public Opinion Quarterly, 80(1): 351-377. doi: 10.1093/poq/nfw001

Mayordomo-Zapata, Claudia (2021). “Diferencias de género y edad en la polarización afectiva española: ¿quién está más polarizado?”. Más Poder Local, 45: 147-161.

McLaughlin, Bryan (2018). “Commitment to the Team: Perceived Conflict and Political Polarization”. Journal of Media Psychology: Theories, Methods, and Applications, 30(1): 41-51. doi: 10.1027/1864-1105/a000176

Ondercin, Heather Louise and Lizotte, Mary Kate (2021). “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling: How Gender Shapes Affective Polarization”. American Politics Research, 49(3): 282-292. doi: 10.1177/1532673X20972103

Orriols, Lluís and León, Sandra (2020). “Looking for Affective Polarization in Spain: PSOE and Podemos from Conflict to Coalition”. South European Society and Politics, 25(3-4): 351-379. doi: 10.1080/13608746.2021.1911440

Reiljan, Andres (2020). “Fear and Loathing Across Party Lines´(Also) in Europe: Affective Polarisation in European Party Systems”. European Journal of Political Research, 59(2): 376-396. doi: 10.1111/1475-6765.12351

Rivera, José Manuel; Lagares Diez, Nieves; Pereira López, María and Jaráiz Gulías, Erika (2021). “Relación entre los diversos usos de las redes sociales Twitter y Facebook, emociones y voto en España”. Revista Latina de Comunicación Social, 79: 73-98. doi: 10.4185/RLCS-2021-1518

Rodon, Toni (2022). “Affective and Territorial Polarisation: The Impact on Vote Choice in Spain”.South European Society and Politics, 27(1): 147169. doi: 10.1080/13608746.2022.2044235

Rogowski, Jon and Sutherland, Joseph (2016). “How Ideology Fuels Affective Polarization”. Political Behavior, 38(2): 485-508. doi: 10.1007/ s11109-015-9323-7

Sherif, Muzafer; Harvey, O. J; Hood, William R.; Sherif, Carolyn W. and White, Jack (1961). Intergroup Conflict and cooperation. The Robbers Cave Experiment. Norman: The University of Oklahoma.

Simón, Pablo (2020). “Two-bloc Logic, Polarisation and Coalition Government: The November 2019 General Election in Spain”. South European Society and Politics, 25(3-4): 533-563. doi: 10.1080/1 3608746.2020.1857085

Tajfel, Henri and Turner, John C. (1979). An Integrative Theory of Intergroup Conflict. In: S. Worchel and W. G. Austin (eds.). The Social Psychology of Intergroup Relations (pp. 33-47). Monterey: Brooks/Cole.

Wagner, Markus (2021). “Affective Polarization in Multiparty Systems”. Electoral Studies, 69: 102199. doi: 10.1016/j.electstud.2020.102199

Webster, Steven W. and Abramowitz, Alan I. (2017). “The Ideological Foundations of Affective Polarization in the US Electorate”. American Politics Research, 45 (4 ) : 621 647. doi: 10.1177/1532673X17703132

Westwood, Sean J.; Iyengar, Shanto; Walgrave, Stefaan; Leonisio, Rafael; Miller, Luis and Strijbis, Oliver (2018). “The Tie That Divides: CrossNational Evidence of the Primacy of Partyism”. European Journal of Political Research, 57(1): 333-354. doi: 10.1111/1475-6765.12228

Wilson, Anne E.; Parker, Victoria A. and Feinberg, Matthew (2020). “Polarization in the Contemporary Political and Media Landscape”. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences, 34: 223-228. doi: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2020.07.005

Yudkin, Daniel; Hawkins, Stephen and Dixon, Tim (2019). The perception gap: How false impressions are pulling Americans apart. Available at: https://psyarxiv.com/r3h5q/, access April 1, 2022.

Published

2023-09-26

How to Cite

Rojo-Martínez, J. M., Crespo-Martínez, I., & Mora-Rodríguez, A. (2023). Intergroup Emotional Dynamics: An Analysis of the Characteristics of Affectively Polarised Spanish Voters. Revista Española De Investigaciones Sociológicas, (184). https://doi.org/10.5477/cis/reis.184.105

Issue

Section

Articles