Doctoral Dissertation Research in Political Science: Group Connections and Mass Partisanship

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This study evaluates a critical question about the causes of partisan resurgence: Is this phenomenon driven by heightened ideological sophistication or more intense partisan group-centrism? Answering this question is crucial for understanding how partisanship affects the ability of the public to constructively participate in democratic politics. This project develops a survey experiment to adjudicate between competing explanations of the resurgence in mass partisanship on a representative sample of the electorate.Intellectual Merit: The project's theory suggests that polarization has made partisanship more capable of providing core psychological benefits, such as uncertainty reduction, to group members. An implication of this theory is that strong psychological motivations to identify with social groups should increase partisan intensity. The study will directly evaluate competing arguments about the underpinnings (psychological or ideological) of partisan resurgence. It advances the polarization literature by specifying the psychological underpinnings of heightened partisan intensity. The project also offers a new perspective on the effect of personality on political evaluations. By evaluating the personality basis of partisanship and partisan strength, this project extends research on personality and politics in a new and fruitful direction.Broader Impacts: This study addresses crucial questions about the quality of democratic citizenship and whether polarization contributes to or undermines the quality of political decision-making. By evaluating the causes of the public's heightened ties to parties, this study will assess how actions on policies are driven by representational concerns.