Political Psychology - Final Exam

What is political psychology?

The study of how people think, feel, and behave in political contexts—how identity, emotions, and group dynamics shape political choices, and how citizens, leaders, and institutions influence each other.

How do campaign ads work if they don’t “brainwash,” and what are the pros and cons of negative campaigning?

Campaign ads mainly set the agenda, reinforce existing beliefs, and use simple emotional messages and “people like you” cues to create a connection rather than total belief change.
Negative campaigning:

• Pros: Often includes more issue content and can raise doubts about opponents.

• Cons: Can lower turnout, increase cynicism, and make politics feel dirty.

How does anger shape political behavior?

• More confidence in prior views

• More polarization and hostility

• Greater willingness to punish the other side

 How does fear shape political behavior?

• More cautious decision-making

• Greater support for authority and security policies

• More openness to leaders who promise order and protectio

What is a hot state vs a cold state in decision-making?

• Cold state: calm, reflective, more analytical

• Hot state: emotional (anger/fear/excitement), more impulsive and short-term; many political reactions happen in hot states.

What is hot cognition in political psychology?

Political concepts (e.g., “Democrat,” “immigration”) are emotionally tagged in memory, so hearing them automatically triggers feelings that shape how information is processed.

what is Affective Intelligence Theory

People do not think about politics the same way all the time.
Instead, they shift between two emotional systems that guide attention and behavior:

Disposition system:
When things feel stable, enthusiasm encourages people to stick with familiar political loyalties and rely on usual shortcuts.

Surveillance system:
When things feel uncertain or dangerous, anxiety increases attention, information seeking, and openness to changing views, breaking people out of routine.

What is the availability heuristic and its political effect?

The availability heuristic is a cognitive bias where individuals estimate the likelihood of an event based on how easily they can recall examples. In politics, this can lead to heightened fear and support for strict policies in response to vivid but infrequent events.

What is framing in political decision-making?

Presenting the same information in different ways (e.g., “lives saved” vs. “lives lost”), which changes choices and emotions even though the underlying facts are identical.

What is confirmation bias in politics?

The tendency to search for, believe, and remember information that supports existing views, while ignoring/dismissing contradictory information, fueling echo chambers and polarization.

What is anchoring, and how does it matter in elections?

Anchoring is a cognitive bias where initial information serves as a reference point, significantly influencing judgments and decisions. In elections, early polls and perceptions can skew voter views and expectations, affecting candidate support.

What is cognitive dissonance and how does it show up in politics?

This phenomenon occurs when individuals experience psychological discomfort due to conflicting beliefs or values, prompting them to rationalize, ignore, or change their views to align with their political identity.

What is partisanship and how does it affect perception?

A strong psychological tie to a party that shapes:

• How people see facts, news, and events

• Who they trust

• How they interpret ambiguity (always favoring their side)

What is conformity and why is one dissenter important?

Conformity is the act of aligning behaviors, beliefs, or attitudes with group norms, often leading individuals to suppress personal opinions. The presence of one dissenter can empower others to express differing views, fostering open dialogue and reducing overall conformity pressure.

What is groupthink and one key consequence?

When protecting group harmony becomes more important than realistic evaluation of options, leading to bad decisions in cabinets, crisis teams, and party leadership.

What is selective group perception?

Supporters of different groups see the same event (protest, debate, trial) differently, each side convinced their interpretation is “what really happened.”

What did minimal group experiments show?

Even random group labels make people favor “us” over “them” in rewards and judgments, demonstrating how easily in-group bias is triggered. These experiments reveal that individuals will exhibit favoritism towards those they perceive as part of their group, even when group distinctions are arbitrary or insignificant.

What does Social Identity Theory (Tajfel & Turner) say about why group membership

People seek a positive social identity from their groups. They compare in-groups to relevant out-groups to boost self-esteem by seeing their group as higher status or more moral. When identity is threatened, people respond through social mobility (leaving a lower-status group if possible), social creativity (changing comparison standards or out-group targets), or social competition (directly competing with out-groups). Group identities also carry behavioral norms (e.g., voting for your party, loyalty to the nation or religion), and violations can lead to punishment or ostracism within the group.

What is the black sheep effect?

Groups sometimes punish bad in-group members more harshly than outsiders to protect the group’s image (“We’re not like that”).

How can economic scarcity and demographic change affect racial attitudes?

They increase status threat for majority groups, tightening ingroup boundaries and boosting negative feelings/implicit bias toward racial out-groups.

What methods are used to measure hidden or implicit bias?

Implicit Association Test (IAT) (reaction times)

List experiments (indirect questioning). These reveal biases people may hide or not recognize.

Other methods include the Affect Misattribution Procedure (AMP) and priming techniques that gauge automatic reactions to various social stimuli.

What has neuroscience found about out-group face perception?

Unfamiliar out-group faces can activate amygdala (threat/fear) responses, but familiarity and exposure reduce this, showing how contact can literally change perception.

What do shoot-don’t-shoot experiments show about policing and bias?

Participants are often faster/more likely to “shoot” Black targets than White ones, even when unarmed. Training helps, but stress and time pressure can reactivate biases.

What are the Big Five traits (OCEAN)

• Openness – more liberal

• Conscientiousness – more conservative

• Extraversion

• Agreeableness

• Neuroticism

How do situational threats (terrorism, crises) affect political attitudes?

Threats push people toward:

• Order, stability, and strong authority

• More conservative positions on security and social issue

What is reactance, and why can hard-sell persuasion backfire?

Resentment when people feel their freedom is threatened (“You must believe X”), causing them to dig in and become less persuaded.

Why is fake news and misinformation politically dangerous?

It can:

• Misinform voters

• Increase polarization

• Undermine trust in experts and institutions (e.g., climate science via manufactured uncertainty)

How do people often judge whether to trust information about complex issues?

They rely on expert consensus as a shortcut (“If most experts agree, it’s probably true”). Disinformation campaigns try to break or muddy this cue.

What are the three main steps of attitudinal inoculation?

Warning: You’ll encounter misleading info

Weak attack: A small or flawed version of the false claim

Refutation: Explanation of why it’s wrong
This pre-bunking builds resistance to future misinformation by preparing individuals to better recognize and counteract deceptive information.

What are two main limits of inoculation approaches?

People may distrust the inoculating source

Algorithms and motivated reasoning shield those who most need it from ever seeing corrections

What does the “fake news game” teach participants?

By role-playing Denier/Clickbait/Conspiracy roles, players learn the tactics and patterns of misinformation, which later improves their ability to recognize fake news.

How common are conspiracy beliefs in the U.S.?

Over 55% of Americans endorse at least one conspiracy theory, meaning conspiracy thinking is widespread, not just fringe.

What are strong psychological predictors of conspiracy beliefs?

 QAnon psychologically appeals to:

Manichean thinking (good vs evil worldview)

End Times beliefs

Belief in a secret, powerful cabal

Paranormal beliefs

Why does calling something a “conspiracy theory” usually not reduce belief?

Because believers:
Distrust elite labels

Enjoy feeling special or unconventional

Tie their identity to being someone who “sees the truth”

Are often resistant to counter-evidence and prefer information that confirms their beliefs.

What did Douglas & Sutton find about morality and conspiracy thinking?

Douglas & Sutton found that individuals with high Machiavellian tendencies are more prone to conspiracy thinking, as they perceive others as conspiratorial. However, recalling moral actions can reduce their willingness to engage in conspiracies and diminish belief in them.

What is policy polarization vs affective polarization?

Policy: People/politicians take more extreme issue positions.

Affective: People like their own party more and hate the other (hostile feelings), regardless of policy specifics.

What evidence do we have for affective polarization?

Implicit bias tests show strong pro-in-group feelings

Feeling thermometers show large emotional gaps

In hiring and economic games, people favor co-partisans, even when less qualified.

What is geographic polarization?

The trend toward counties and regions becoming strongly one-party (landslide counties), so fewer areas are politically mixed, reducing everyday cross-partisan contact.

How does homophily fuel polarization?

People cluster with similar others:

Homophily leads to polarization as individuals tend to associate with those who share similar beliefs and values. This clustering creates echo chambers, reducing inter-party interactions and fostering stereotypes and misperceptions about opposing groups.

Friends share politics (social homophily)

People live near same-partisan neighbors (residential homophily)

What did Bail et al. find about exposure to opposing views on Twitter?

Republicans who followed a liberal bot became more conservative; Democrats showed little change. Exposure to opposing views without trust can create backlash rather than persuasion.

What are some major consequences of high polarization?

More political violence and threats

Gridlock and policy whiplash

Election of more extreme, lower-quality politicians

Increased cynicism and withdrawal from politics

Mental health strain from constant conflict

What is the accountability problem caused by polarization?

When people judge politicians mainly by party, not performance, good performance may not be rewarded, and bad performance may not be punished, undermining democratic accountability.

What were the main findings of Milgram’s obedience studies?

Milgram's studies demonstrated that approximately 63% of participants were willing to administer the maximum 450V shock to a learner when prompted by an authoritative figure. This highlighted the influence of authority, the concept of the agentic state (the idea of "just following orders"), and the role of gradual escalation in eliciting obedience.

What is the bystander effect, and how is it politically relevant?

The more people present, the less likely anyone is to help. Politically, it helps explain non-voting, inaction on big problems (e.g., climate), and citizens assuming “someone else will act.”

Why is extremism considered “social,” not just individual?

Extremism often grows in groups, where:
Shared ideology intensifies commitment

Leaders escalate demands

Dehumanization is normalized

Violence bonds members, making backing down harder

How did propaganda help enable the Rwandan genocide?

Media like Kangura and RTLM:
Spread anti-Tutsi ideology and dehumanization (“cockroaches”)

Created fear and urgency

Clearly signaled what “good Hutus” should do, so when the president’s plane was shot down, many citizens were ready to participate in killings.

What legal accountability has there been for media incitement to violence?

ICTR convicted Kangura and RTLM leaders for inciting genocide

At Nuremberg, Julius Streicher (Der Stürmer) was executed for crimes against humanity
Showing that media figures can be held accountable for inciting mass violence.

What did Paluck’s (2008) radio soap opera study in Rwanda find?

The peace-promoting show did not change personal beliefs about causes of violence, but did change social norms and behaviors:
More willingness to disagree openly

Less blind obedience to authority

More empathy and democratic decision-making
Media can shift norms even without changing every private belief.

What is nationalism? How is “nation” different from “state”?

Nationalism is loyalty to a shared identity and community. A "nation" refers to a group of people with common characteristics, while a "state" is a political entity with defined borders and governance. A nation-state is formed when these two align closely.

How does nationalism relate to Social Identity Theory?

People want a positive national identity; they may use:
Social creativity (redefining what makes the nation great)

Social competition (fighting for status or dominance)
This can lead to scapegoating and out-group blame when in-group flaws are denied.

What is dehumanization and metadehumanization in political conflict?

Dehumanization: seeing the out-group as less than fully human.

Metadehumanization: believing the other side dehumanizes your group.
This belief increases prejudice, spite, and willingness to harm the other side even at the country’s expense.

Why can norm violators seem powerful (Van Kleef et al.)?

Breaking rules signals freedom, dominance, and high power. In times of crisis or high polarization, people may admire or support norm-violating leaders if they appear to act “for the group.”

What are Weber’s sources of legitimacy and the types of fairness?

Weber identified three primary sources of legitimacy: traditional, charismatic, and rational-legal, along with two types of fairness: procedural fairness (the fairness of the process) and outcome fairness (the fairness of the results). In the context of social psychology, these concepts illustrate how individuals perceive and react to authority and fairness within groups.

What is pluralistic ignorance and how does it affect polarization?

People underestimate how many others share their moderate or tolerant views. This makes society appear more extreme than it actually is, reinforcing polarization and making extremes seem more widely supported than they are.

Positive vs. negative feedback loops in polarization?

Positive feedback loops amplify polarization, while negative feedback loops can reduce it. The former includes factors like sorting and misinformation, whereas the latter can involve unity norms and shared threats.

How can empathy sometimes increase political polarization?

Empathy is often parochial:

• Stronger for in-group members

• Can increase hostility toward out-group elites

Yet still reduce social distance with ordinary out-group members

What is a “culture of honor,” and why does it matter politically?

 In honor cultures (e.g., U.S. South):

• Insults trigger stronger aggression

• Violence is seen as reputation-protecting

• Cultural norms shape political behavior and conflict

Why are narrative news stories more persuasive than factual reports?

 Narratives increase transportation (emotional immersion), which:

• Increases empathy

• Improves attitudes toward stigmatized groups

• Raises willingness to help, donate, or learn more

What did flag experiments show about nationalism and polarization?

Subliminal exposure to the Israeli flag sometimes reduced polarization by activating shared national identity.

U.S. flag exposure can make egalitarian norms more accessible.
These show national symbols can prime norms and shape political attitudes.

Why don’t facts alone usually change immigration attitudes, and how do ethnic cues matter?

• Attitudes are driven more by emotion and group threat than raw numbers.

Stories with a Latino immigrant can trigger more anxiety and opposition among some people than stories about a European immigrant, because of stereotypes and threat cues.

Why do ideologies form, and when is extremism more likely?

• Ideologies help people make sense of the world, give meaning, and provide belonging.
  

• Extremism is more likely when people feel threatened, ignored, insecure, or crave simple, clear answers to complex problems.

What is the security dilemma and its psychological roots?

• Even peaceful states look threatening when they build defenses, so others arm up too, leading to arms races and entrenched enemies.

• Psychologically:

  • Actor–observer bias: “Our buildup is defensive; theirs is aggressive.”

Fundamental attribution error: over-attribute hostile intentions to others.

How does nationalism vary across and within countries?

• Across countries: levels of national pride differ widely (e.g., U.S. pride has declined over time).

• Within countries: poorer individuals tend to be more nationalistic, while minority groups are often less nationalistic because of exclusion or distrust.

What does the breakup of Yugoslavia teach about nationalism in political psychology?

• Yugoslavia was a multi-national state with mixed populations.

• After Tito, elites like Milosevic used propaganda, historic grievances, and myths to mobilize Serb nationalism.

Fear spirals and enemy images across groups show how leaders can manipulate identity and how belief perseverance fuels conflict.

What does Wilson mean by political culture?

Political culture = shared ideas about rights and duties that keep society working.

There are two main types of rights:

• Care (positive rights): people should help each other; fairness and community matter.

• Autonomy (negative rights): people should be left alone; freedom and privacy matter.

Cultures change over time:

• Early cultures focus on duty and hierarchy.

• Modern cultures focus on individual rights.

• Advanced cultures try to balance care + freedom.

How does Wilson describe U.S. political culture?

The U.S. mainly values autonomy (negative rights).

This means:

• Strong individualism

• Equality = equal opportunity, not equal outcomes

• Acceptance of economic inequality

• Strong political freedoms, weak social welfare

Political conflict comes from two views:

• Individualists: freedom, small government

• Egalitarians: fairness, care, less inequality

Wilson argues the U.S. may slowly change if inequality becomes harder to justify.