10. How politics became our identity Flashcards
What is the Robber’s Cave experiment?
1950s group of boys on summer camp. The Rattlers and the eagles. first two weeks the boys dont interact with the other group. then they interact playing games and very quickly discriminatory behaviour occurs, fights break out
what is the trend in cross pressures or cross cutting cleavages?
these kinds of cross pressures have diminished in recent years
this term refers to aspects of a person’s identity that cut in opposite directions. e.g. a white evangelical who is active in a labor union would likely feel cross pressure
what is the result of the trend in cross pressures?
people with the most political cross pressures tend to be more moderate and less politically engaged, so more polarisation
partisanship has become a ___ ____ according to Mason. what does this mean?
mega-identity
representing both a division over policy and a broader clash between white, christian conservatives and a liberal, multiracial, secular elite
why might it be rational to conform to a group’s belief?
- you assume greater knowledge in the collective
- you assume greater expertise as we can’t all be experts in everything
- you want to maintain good standing within the group
what is the effect of groupthink on views of the economy?
- views of US economy based on partisan leaning change depending on who is in white house
- e.g. when Obama in power Dems thoguht more positively about economy, when trump in power Rep belief in economy shot up
perceptions of other partisan’s beliefs on things are _____
exaggerated
- e.g. Dems estimate that only 50% of Reps would beleive that racism still exists, but actually 78% of Reps believe this
what is the link between population density and vote share?
strong correlation in 2016 onwards
partisans increasingly live separate from each other and have less contact that in the past, again reducing cross pressures and leading to even greater partisanship and seeing the other side as the enemy
what is minimal group paradigm?
- what is the minimal group identity assigned to people before they start acting in a discriminatory way
- the 70s experiment found that there is none, peopel always adopt a group mentality even if the group is split up over something entirely arbitrary and meaningless.
what does zero sum conflict mean?
every gain that one party makes is a loss to the other
Why is legislation more difficult to pass now?
- control changes more frequently in congress and majorities are smaller in recent years
- why would you help the opposition in passing stuff if you think you can swing the election your way next time - increased use of the filibuster. mucho increased use since the 70s
Why do Republicans have an advantage in the electoral college?
- gerrymandering works bc of winner take all
- GOP more evenly distributed across country while Dems are concentrated in liberal states which means they don’t win a bunch of different states
- GOP in more rural areas of states that shouldnt really have much power but bc of federalism they do e.g. montana, wyoming
what is a cloture motion?
An attempt to end debate and vote on a bill. if fewer than 60 senators vote to end debate, the cloture motiion is defeated i.e. a filibuster. cloture motions serve as a rough proxy for filibustering over time.
What is the biggest ideological divide between the parties?
whether there is too much political correctness today or too much prejudice
What has been the greatest impact on the rise of partisan polarisation over the last 30 years?
- race and ethnicity
- it was a big issue beforehand, but now it much strongly maps onto partisan alignment and how they correlate with so many other policy and social views such as healthcare
