I Hate What I'm Hearing: Exposure to Political Discussion and Partisan Dislike

Authors

Stacy G. Ulbig

Volume Number

43

Issue Number

1

Abstract

While the American public may not be as ideologically polarised as the officeholders representing them, recent evidence suggests a form of affective polarisation has spread to the masses. Unfortunately, we know little about the sources of such partisan animus. I investigate the role that exposure to political discussion in various social networks plays in exacerbating partisan animosities by examining the relationship between exposure to political discussion in a number of different social venues and feelings of dislike for the opposing party. I fin d that exposure to political discussion in networks likely to be more homogeneous (i.e, within the family and on the internet) is associated with increasedfeelings of dislike for the opposite party, while exposure to political discussion in networks that typically exhibit more heterogeneity (with friends, co-workers, andfellow churchgoers) is not. Further, there is evidence that certain portions of the electorate are differentially affected by exposure to different sorts of political discussion.

Recommended Citation

Ulbig, Stacy G. (2015) "I Hate What I'm Hearing: Exposure to Political Discussion and Partisan Dislike," Journal of Political Science: Vol. 43: No. 1, Article 6.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/jops/vol43/iss1/6