Political Psychology: Emotions, Decision-Making, and Media Effects

Somatic Marker Hypothesis

Emotions create bodily "markers" that guide future decisions—our gut feelings steer political judgments. Example: You get a bad feeling about a candidate who reminds you of a past scandal, so you avoid voting for them.*

Affective Intelligence Theory

Two systems govern emotion in politics: dispositional (enthusiasm maintains habits) and surveillance (anxiety triggers new information-seeking). Example: You normally support your party, but anxiety after a crisis makes you research alternatives.*

Cognitive Appraisal Theory

Emotions arise from evaluating (appraising) situations; cognition comes first. Example: You judge an ad as unfair, then feel angry about it.*

Hot Cognition

Political objects automatically evoke emotion before reasoning—people feel before they think. Example: Seeing your party's logo instantly makes you feel proud or annoyed.*

Emotion vs. Cognition

Emotions are fast, automatic reactions; cognition is slower, deliberate reasoning. Example: Feeling fear when hearing "terrorism" before analyzing the policy details.*

Dispositional vs. Surveillance System

Dispositional = routine satisfaction; Surveillance = detects threat, triggers anxiety. Example: You stay loyal when content, but a scandal activates your surveillance system.*

Anger

Increases political action and punishment motives but reduces openness to new info. Example: Angry voters donate or protest but ignore opposing facts.*

Anxiety

Encourages learning and information-seeking but may lower participation. Example: Nervous about an election, you start reading articles to understand policies.*

Fear

Heightens vigilance and caution; linked to security-focused voting. Example: Fear after a terror attack increases support for "tough on crime" candidates.*

Enthusiasm

Boosts participation and reinforces loyalty to one's party or candidate. Example: Excitement from campaign rallies motivates people to vote.*

Blind Retrospection

Voters reward or punish leaders for events beyond their control. Example: Presidential approval rises after a local football team wins.*

Genetics and Political Participation

Genes partly explain turnout and ideology differences; shown by twin studies. Example: Identical twins vote at similar rates even when raised apart.*

Civic Duty

Belief that voting is a moral obligation; strongly predicts turnout. Example: "It's my responsibility as a citizen to vote."*

Stress and Political Participation

High stress or cortisol lowers political activity. Example: Overworked citizens skip elections due to exhaustion.*

Cortisol

Stress hormone—chronically high levels correlate with lower turnout. Example: People with high cortisol are less likely to volunteer politically.*

Information Shortcuts

Simple cues help decisions when uninformed. Example: Voting for the candidate who shares your party label.*

Opinion Leaders

Informed people guide peers' opinions. Example: A politically active friend explains ballot measures to everyone else.*

Candidate Traits

Qualities like honesty, leadership, and empathy influence votes. Example: A "trustworthy" image helps a candidate gain support.*

Party Identification

Long-term psychological attachment to a party; key vote predictor. Example: A lifelong Democrat votes blue out of identity, not policy.*

Running Tally Model of Party ID

Party ID updates as experiences with parties change. Example: After years of poor performance, someone switches allegiance.*

Perceptual Screen

Partisan bias filters how info is seen. Example: Both sides think debate moderators favored the other candidate.*

Turnout

Percent of eligible voters who cast ballots. Example: 60% turnout means 6 in 10 eligible citizens voted.*

Field Experiment

Real-world randomized test of cause and effect. Example: Randomly assigning homes to receive GOTV door knocks.*

Social Pressure

People act when they know others can see them. Example: Turnout rises when neighbors get mail showing who voted.*

Mobilization

Efforts to get supporters to act politically. Example: Campaign volunteers texting voters to remind them to vote.*

Persuasion

Attempts to change attitudes via communication. Example: An ad convinces independents to support healthcare reform.*

Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

Central route (deep thought) causes lasting change; peripheral route (surface cues) causes short-term change. Example: A policy debate vs. a catchy jingle.*

Persuasion in Parallel

Emotional and cognitive processes work together. Example: A hopeful speech that's both logical and inspiring.*

Consistency Theory (mobilization)

People act consistently with past commitments. Example: Signing a pledge to vote makes you likelier to actually vote.*

Conformity

Adjusting behavior to group norms. Example: Putting up a yard sign because all your neighbors did.*

Compliance

Changing behavior after a direct request. Example: Donating when a volunteer personally asks you.*

Communicator (persuasion)

The messenger; credibility and likability matter. Example: People trust messages from veterans on defense issues.*

Communication (persuasion)

The content or framing of the message. Example: "Tax relief" sounds better than "tax cuts for the rich."*

Target (persuasion)

The audience; prior attitudes and motivation affect response. Example: Engaged voters scrutinize ads more carefully.*

Central Route

Careful argument evaluation → durable change. Example: Reading a detailed op-ed that alters your opinion.*

Peripheral Route

Relying on surface cues → short-term change. Example: Supporting a candidate after a celebrity endorsement.*

Positive Ads

Highlight achievements and optimism. Example: "I cut taxes and created jobs."*

Negative Ads

Attack the opponent; effects depend on tone. Example: "My rival voted to raise your taxes."*

Contrast Ads

Compare both candidates' records. Example: "I fought for education; my opponent cut funding."*

Mobilization Hypothesis

Negative ads energize supporters. Example: Attack ads make partisans more likely to vote.*

Demobilization Hypothesis

Negative ads discourage participation. Example: Nasty campaigns make independents stay home.*

Analogic Perspective Taking

Using empathy by recalling similar experiences. Example: Voters reflect on times they were judged to empathize with minorities.*

Hostile Media Effect

Partisans see neutral coverage as biased against them. Example: Both liberals and conservatives think CNN is unfair.*

Episodic vs. Thematic Frames

Episodic = personal stories; Thematic = broad context. Example: A news clip about one homeless person vs. a report on poverty trends.*

Media Bias

Systematic favoritism in news selection or tone. Example: A network covers one party's rallies more positively.*

Media Usage Patterns in the US

Americans rely on TV and digital news; partisans choose like-minded outlets. Example: Conservatives prefer Fox News; liberals prefer MSNBC.*

Framing Effect

Presentation changes interpretation. Example: Calling taxes "relief" vs. "burden" shifts opinions.*

Priming

Media emphasis changes evaluation criteria. Example: Constant economy coverage makes people judge presidents on jobs.*

Gatekeeping

Journalists decide which stories become news. Example: Editors choose to cover a protest but not a policy debate.*

Coverage Bias

Unequal attention to candidates or issues. Example: One candidate gets twice as many stories.*

Statement Bias

Favorable or negative tone toward a side. Example: Articles describe one candidate as "confident" and the other as "angry."*

Accessibility Model of Framing

Frames make ideas easier to recall. Example: Emphasizing "crime" primes fear when thinking about immigration.*

Importance Change Model of Framing

Frames alter which considerations seem most important. Example: Describing climate change as an economic issue raises support for green jobs.*

Availability (framing)

Info must exist in memory to matter. Example: You can't be influenced by a policy you've never heard of.*

Accessibility (framing)

Recently activated ideas surface first. Example: Seeing crime stories makes "safety" top of mind.*

Applicability (framing)

A frame must fit the issue context. Example: A "freedom" frame fits gun rights better than environmental policy.*

Moderators of Framing Effects

Knowledge, motivation, and prior attitudes change framing strength. Example: Politically savvy viewers resist biased frames.*

Priming Effects

Issues emphasized by media weigh more in evaluations. Example: After health-care coverage spikes, voters judge leaders by that issue.*

Satisfice

Settling for a "good enough" choice due to limited info. Example: Picking a familiar candidate instead of researching others.*

Priming vs. Framing

Priming = what to think about; Framing = how to think about it. Example: Media spotlighting immigration (priming) vs. portraying immigrants as workers or threats (framing).*

Priming Hypothesis

Emphasized issues become key evaluation criteria. Example: Repeated inflation stories make the economy the main voting issue.*

Infotainment Priming

Entertainment shows subtly influence opinions. Example: Jokes on late-night TV shape views of politicians.*

Subliminal Priming

Hidden cues activate attitudes unconsciously. Example: A quick flag image increases patriotic feelings.*

Informational Appeals

Persuasive messages relying on facts and logic. Example: A campaign mailer listing detailed policy achievements.*

Fake News

Intentionally false news designed to deceive. Example: A viral post claiming a candidate was arrested when they weren't.*

Political Content on Social Media

Small portion of posts but high engagement. Example: A meme about elections gets shared widely.*

Echo Chamber

Exposure only to like-minded views reinforces beliefs. Example: Following only accounts that agree with your politics.*

Heterogeneous vs. Homogeneous Network

Diverse networks expose differing views; uniform ones heighten polarization. Example: A mixed-politics friend group vs. all-partisan group.*

Social Media Comments & Misinformation

Comments spread falsehoods even under accurate articles. Example: Facebook users believe rumors from comment sections.*

Mobilization on Social Media

Seeing peers act politically spurs your own participation. Example: You vote after seeing friends post "I Voted."*