Political Neutrals Find Political Polarization Particularly Disengaging

Abstract

Past research finds that the more people perceive polarization in others the more extreme their own attitudes become. However, we do not know what affect the perception of polarization has on political neutrals and moderates. In the proposed study, we will examine how polarization perception differentially affects those with neutral, moderate, and extreme views. Specifically, we will examine how these perceptions affect political engagement and voting intention. We expect to find that neutrals and moderates’ engagement is attenuated by perception of polarization and confirm previous finding that extremists become further engaged in perceiving a polarized electorate. In this correlational and longitudinal study, we will gather voting intention measures prior to the Fall 2019 election and follow-up with respondents to determine if intention translated to action. We expect that extremists will show stronger voting intentions the more they perceive polarization whereas moderates and neutrals will show less commitment to vote the more they perceive the political system is polarized.

Faculty Mentor: Craig Blatz

Department: Psychology (Honours)