When Politics Becomes Personal
The Effect of Partisan Identity on Anti-Democratic Behavior

Demonstrates how partisans can feel deeply attached to their political party without feeling disdain for their political opponents.

Alexa Bankert (Author)

9781316511343, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 18 January 2024

206 pages, 25 b/w illus.
23.5 x 15.5 x 1.7 cm, 0.434 kg

'For those who want an overview of many of the major issues surrounding the nature and impact of partisan identities, this book is invaluable … Highly recommended.' J. M. Stonecash, CHOICE

Can we be good partisans without demonizing our political opponents? Using insights from political science and social psychology, this book argues for the distinction between positive and negative partisanship. As such, strong support for a political party does not have to be accompanied by the vilification of the opposing party and its members. Utilizing data from five different countries, Bankert demonstrates that positive and negative partisanship are independent concepts with distinct consequences for political behavior, including citizens' political participation and their commitment to democratic norms and values. The book concludes with the hopeful message that partisanship is an essential pillar of representative and liberal democracy.

1. Introduction to the book
2. From rational choice to partisan identity – a paradigm change
3. Partisan identity and political behavior – a review of prior scholarship
4. Negative partisanship
5. The measurement of positive partisan identity
6. The measurement of negative partisan identity
7. The psychological origins of positive and negative partisan identities
8. The impact of positive and negative partisan identities on democratic behavior in the U.S. and Europe
9. The impact of partisan identities on anti-democratic behavior in the U.S. and Europe
10. Reconciling partisanship and democracy
11. Future outlook
Appendix
References
Index.

Subject Areas: Social, group or collective psychology [JMH]