“Partisan Moments: Reconsidering the Nature and Effects of Partisan Misperceptions,” Yphtach Lelkes, UPenn

AMERICAN & COMPARATIVE POLITICAL BEHAVIOR WORKSHOP

Abstract: A prevailing view suggests that America’s democratic issues stem from Republicans and Democrats incorrectly perceiving each other as holding extreme attitudes. This perspective assumes that such misperceptions lead to heightened partisan animosity and anti-democratic sentiment, and that rectifying these misperceptions can mitigate these issues. I present evidence from a series of papers that challenges the extant evidence.

In a series of novel experiments and a meta-analysis, we find that correcting perceptions of parties does not reliably reduce partisan animosity, support for partisan violence, or support for democratic norms. Instead, we find that these perceptions are unstable and akin to non-attitudes. Additionally, when a different method is employed to gauge perceptions—one that requires individuals to consider specific members rather than the “average partisan”—the results show that Americans generally possess accurate perceptions of both their own and the opposing party’s attitudes. Despite this accuracy, there is a notable underestimation of the diversity of views within each party.

This research highlights the complexity of addressing democratic challenges in the U.S. and questions the effectiveness of interventions targeting specific party perceptions. It underscores the need for a deeper understanding of the nuances in partisan attitudes and the diversity within political parties.

Yphtach (Yph) Lelkes is an Associate Professor at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania, where he holds a secondary appointment in political science. In the broadest sense, he is interested in the antecedents, structure, and consequences of citizens’ political attitudes. He is the Co-Director of the Polarization Research Lab, which looks at affective polarization, social trust, and political violence. He is also the Co-Director of the Center for Information Networks and Democracy, which researches the benefits and risks that information networks have for democracy. His work has appeared in top journals in political science, communication, and psychology.

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The series is sponsored by the ISPS Center for the Study of American Politics and The Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale with support from the Edward J. and Dorothy Clarke Kempf Fund.