Political Polarization During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Sebastian Jungkunz

90 citations0/0 files storedFrontiers in Political Science

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Electoral Systems and Political Participation Social and Intergroup Psychology Populism, Right-Wing Movements

Abstract

Affective polarization has increased substantially in the United States and countries of Europe over the last decades and the ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic have the potential to drastically reinforce such polarization. I investigate the degree and dynamic of affective polarization during the COVID-19 pandemic through a two-wave panel survey with a vignette experiment in Germany fielded in April/May and July/August 2020. I 1) compare the findings to a previous study from 2017, and 2) assess how economic distress due to the crisis changes perceptions of other partisans. Results show that the public today experiences slightly stronger polarization between AfD voters and supporters of other parties. Yet, higher economic distress decreases the negative sentiment of voters of other parties towards AfD supporters. I argue that experiencing economic distress increases the awareness of political debate and the responsiveness to government decisions. Thus, in times of broad cross-party consensus, this can translate into public opinion so that it makes people less hostile towards other partisans.

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References

1979The Social psychology of intergroup relations 1992The Nature and Origins of Mass Opinion 2020Using social and behavioural science to support COVID-19 pandemic response 2018The Origins and Consequences of Affective Polarization in the United States 2012Affect, Not Ideology 2014Fear and Loathing across Party Lines: New Evidence on Group Polarization 2008West European Politics in the Age of Globalization 1994Shortcuts Versus Encyclopedias: Information and Voting Behavior in California Insurance Reform Elections

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