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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
I Am Not A Hero: Heroic Action Divorces The Hero From The Political Community, Ari Kohen, Brian Riches, Andre Sólo
I Am Not A Hero: Heroic Action Divorces The Hero From The Political Community, Ari Kohen, Brian Riches, Andre Sólo
Department of Political Science: Faculty Publications
Most people who perform a heroic act will, afterward, deny that their actions were heroic and claim that anyone would have done the same, even though that is demonstrably false (and, often, others were present who failed to act heroically at all). The literature on the psychology of heroism has never investigated why this is. This theoretical paper proposes an answer and seeks to provoke exploration of a previously unexplored topic. We note that people who undertake heroic action face a unique conflict: they embody their community’s highest values, while simultaneously breaking norms to stand apart from that community. We …
Friends, Relatives, Sanity, And Health: The Costs Of Politics, Kevin Smith, Matthew V. Hibbing, John R. Hibbing
Friends, Relatives, Sanity, And Health: The Costs Of Politics, Kevin Smith, Matthew V. Hibbing, John R. Hibbing
Department of Political Science: Faculty Publications
Political scientists have long known that political involvement exacts costs but they have typically defined these costs in relatively narrow, largely economic terms. Though anecdotal evidence suggests that the costs of politics may in fact extend beyond economics to frayed personal relationships, compromised emotional stability, and even physical problems, no systematic evidence on these broader costs exists. We construct and validate batteries of survey items that delineate the physical, social, and emotional costs of political engagement and administer these items to a demographically representative sample of U.S. adults. The results suggest that a large number of Americans believe their physical …