memo
In the US presidential election, which took place on November 5, 2024 local time, former Republican President Donald Trump secured victory after a fierce battle with Democratic Party Kamala Harris. In recent years, it has been pointed out that while the Republican Party has been promoting policies with a strong conservative tone, the Democratic Party has been emphasizing policies with a strong liberal tone in election campaigns.policy polarizationwas clearly visible. In January 2024, the foreign media The Washington Post discussed why severe polarization is occurring in the United States, so I have summarized its contents.
Science is revealing why American politics are so intensely polarized – The Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/2024/01/20/polarization-science-evolution-psychology/
As of January 2024, American political commentators predicted that “the 2024 presidential election will be as close as 2020.” In response, social scientists focused on the intensifying political divisions. various academic papers andbookshas been announced.
According to the Washington Post, American politics is “becoming emotional,” and there is a growing possibility that an instinctive dislike of the opposition party will influence the choice of political party. Shanto Iyengar, a political psychologist at Stanford University, calls this “emotional polarization,” and Liliana Mason of Johns Hopkins University calls it “polarization based on emotions rather than polarization based on policy preferences.” It is a polarization based on
Nicholas Christakis, a sociologist at Yale University, says, “The evolution of cooperation sadly requires cross-group hatred,” and “the same is true in the political arena.” As the Washington Post points out: The Washington Post also argued that “today’s polarization is not based on human nature, but on the exploitation and exploitation of human emotions by political operatives to win in divide-and-conquer politics.” Ta.
“The only way to increase cohesion in a group is to hate another group,” Mason said. Actually, it was carried out in 1954.the studySo, we divided 22 Boy Scouts into two groups and had them go camping without knowing each other’s existence. One week later, the research team revealed to each group the existence of another group. Then, these groups showed a strong dislike for the other group, treating them not as “mere rivals” but as “fundamentally flawed human beings.”
“Democrats and Republicans today have more in common with this experiment than we realize,” Mason said. “Candidates are almost certain to tap into resentment and anger that cuts across racial, religious, and cultural lines, which have been sharply divided by party in recent years.”
According to Iyengar, in recent years, as media has become fragmented into television, the Internet, etc.echo chamberCollecting information is now easier than ever. As a result, people are more likely to accept the opinions of people with particular beliefs and ideas, and are actually more likely to move to areas where there are many party supporters. Mr. Iyengar said, “In 1965, only about 60% of married couples supported the same political party, but by 2024, the proportion of married couples who support the same political party will exceed 85%, and partisan clustering will occur.” “This trend is progressing even within the home.”
Previous research has shown that emotional polarization has intensified across the political spectrum, with more than half of Republicans and Democrats viewing the other party as a “threat” or “evil.” thing isclearlyIt has become. Furthermore, in a survey conducted in 2022, when subjects were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the opinion that “members of rival political parties are animals, not humans,” approximately 30% of supporters of both political parties agreed with this opinion. It is reported that they agree with the opinion.
Today, there is not only polarization between Democrats and Republicans, but also polarization within the party, with Republican Brad Lowe saying, “We are definitely on the brink of civil war.” was shown.
Eli Fenkel of Northwestern University et al. By telling people that “freedom is being threatened for some reason,” they activate the emotional response of their supporters, skillfully playing on political divisions.”pointing outI did. “Trump could benefit greatly from political polarization,” Iyengar said.
Danagal Young of the University of Delaware also pointed out, “Trump isn’t just telling us to be afraid. He’s telling us to be angry. Anger is a powerful emotional force in people.” I did.
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