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Full-Text Articles in Political Theory
Just Like The Others: Party Differences, Perception, And Satisfaction With Democracy, Hannah M. Ridge
Just Like The Others: Party Differences, Perception, And Satisfaction With Democracy, Hannah M. Ridge
Political Science Faculty Articles and Research
A robust literature on citizens’ satisfaction with democracy argues that system satisfaction is based on the policy outcomes that citizens anticipate from electoral results. A tacit assumption in this research is that there are differences between the parties and that citizens are aware of the ideological and preference diversity in their political environment. Some citizens, however, fail to perceive these differences. Using a multi-national set of post-election surveys, regression analysis, and propensity score matching, perceived party difference is shown to substantially impact citizens’ systemic satisfaction. Those who believe all parties are the same are substantially less satisfied with the functioning …
Enemy Mine: Negative Partisanship And Satisfaction With Democracy, Hannah M. Ridge
Enemy Mine: Negative Partisanship And Satisfaction With Democracy, Hannah M. Ridge
Political Science Faculty Articles and Research
Polarization has increased in recent decades, including emotional distance between partisans. While positive partisan identity has been linked to the absorption of democratic norms and democratic satisfaction, this article addresses the impact of negative partisanship on citizens’ satisfaction with the functioning of their democracies. Employing two measures of negative partisanship – dislike for a party and unwillingness to ever vote for a party – the article finds that negative partisanship is linked to lower satisfaction with democracy, particularly negative partisanship for major parties. It also finds that respondents’ sentiments towards other parties moderate the experience of electoral outcomes; the win/loss …