Political Psychology

Cheatsheet Content

### Core Theories #### Social Identity Theory (SIT) - Tajfel & Turner - **Definition:** Individuals derive self-esteem from their group memberships. Motivates group-serving biases. - **Key Constructs:** - **Social Categorization:** Cognitive process of classifying people into groups (ingroup/outgroup). - **Social Identification:** Adopting the identity of the group, feeling a sense of belonging. - **Social Comparison:** Comparing ingroup to outgroup, often to achieve positive distinctiveness. - **Positive Distinctiveness:** Desire to see one's ingroup as better than relevant outgroups. - **Ingroup Favoritism:** Preferential treatment, evaluation, or allocation of resources to ingroup members. - **Minimal Group Paradigm:** Experimental design showing ingroup favoritism based on arbitrary group assignment (e.g., Klee vs. Kandinsky preferences). - **Measurement:** Self-report scales assessing identification, perceived group status, intergroup attitudes. - **Criticisms:** Can oversimplify complex intergroup dynamics; sometimes neglects individual differences or structural inequalities. - **Links to other theories:** Explains ingroup love and outgroup derogation central to Realistic Conflict Theory, SDO, RWA. - **Examples:** Sports team rivalry, political party loyalty, national pride. #### Relative Deprivation Theory (RDT) - Runciman - **Definition:** Feelings of discontent arising from a perceived discrepancy between one's actual situation and one's expected or deserved situation, especially when comparing to a relevant reference group. - **Key Constructs:** - **Egoistic Deprivation:** Individual-level feeling of being deprived relative to other individuals. - **Fraternalistic Deprivation:** Group-level feeling of being deprived relative to other groups. More strongly linked to collective action and protest. - **Measurement:** Self-report measures of perceived injustice and comparison. - **Criticisms:** Difficulty in defining reference groups; can be a consequence rather than a cause of social unrest. - **Links to other theories:** Often a precursor to SIT dynamics and collective action models (SIMCA). #### Realistic Conflict Theory (RCT) - Sherif - **Definition:** Intergroup conflict arises from competition over scarce resources. - **Key Constructs:** - **Ethnocentrism:** Belief in the superiority of one's own ethnic group. - **Negative Interdependence:** Goals of one group are perceived to be incompatible with another group's goals. - **Superordinate Goals:** Goals that require cooperation between groups and reduce intergroup conflict (e.g., Robbers Cave experiment). - **Berkowitz Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis:** Reinterpreted: frustration can lead to aggression, especially when an external group is seen as the cause. - **Measurement:** Behavioral observation, self-report of intergroup attitudes. - **Criticisms:** Does not fully explain conflict in absence of real competition; neglects psychological factors like identity. - **Links to other theories:** Provides a structural basis for SIT (competition fuels categorization), and informs Integrated Threat Theory. - **Examples:** Competition over jobs between immigrant and native-born populations, land disputes. #### Common Bond vs. Common Identity - Prentice & Deaux - **Definition:** Distinguishes between two types of group attachments. - **Key Constructs:** - **Common Bond Groups:** Based on interpersonal attachments among individual members (e.g., friends, small work teams). Focus on individual relationships. - **Common Identity Groups:** Based on attachment to the group as a whole, often through shared category membership (e.g., nationality, political party). Focus on the collective. - **Implication:** Different motivations for joining, remaining in, and acting on behalf of the group. #### Social Identity Model of Collective Action (SIMCA) - van Zomeren et al. - **Definition:** Explains when and why people engage in collective action. - **Key Constructs:** - **Injustice:** Perceived unfairness regarding one's group's situation (often linked to fraternalistic deprivation). - **Efficacy:** Belief that collective action can be effective in achieving group goals. - **Identity:** Strong identification with the disadvantaged group (SIT). - **Model:** Injustice + Efficacy + Identity → Collective Action. - **Measurement:** Scales for perceived injustice, collective efficacy, and group identification. - **Links to other theories:** Integrates RDT (injustice), SIT (identity), and social cognitive theories (efficacy). #### Deindividuation - Zimbardo - **Definition:** A psychological state of decreased self-awareness and personal accountability that occurs in group settings, leading to uninhibited and sometimes antisocial behavior. - **Key Constructs:** Anonymity, diffused responsibility, group size, arousal. - **Criticisms:** Can be overly simplistic; not all group behavior is negative; "emergent norm theory" offers an alternative. - **Links to other theories:** Explains some aspects of mob behavior and political violence. #### Integrated Threat Theory (ITT) - Stephan & Stephan - **Definition:** Explains prejudice and negative intergroup attitudes as a response to perceived threats from outgroups. - **Key Constructs:** - **Realistic Threat:** Threats to the ingroup's existence, power, or resources (e.g., economic, political, health). - **Symbolic Threat:** Threats to the ingroup's values, norms, beliefs, or culture. - **Intergroup Anxiety:** Feelings of discomfort or apprehension during intergroup interactions. - **Negative Stereotypes:** Beliefs about negative characteristics of the outgroup. - **Measurement:** Self-report scales for each threat component. - **Links to other theories:** Integrates RCT (realistic threat) and SIT (symbolic threat, identity). #### Klandermans' 4-Step Model of Mobilization - **Definition:** A social psychological model outlining the processes by which individuals become involved in social movements. - **Steps:** 1. **Potential for Mobilization:** Existence of grievances and shared interests (e.g., RDT, SIT). 2. **Mobilization Potential:** Individuals' readiness to participate based on beliefs about efficacy and likelihood of success. 3. **Recruitment Networks:** Contact and communication through social networks. 4. **Participation:** Actual involvement in collective action. - **Links to other theories:** Incorporates elements of RDT, SIT, and rational choice theory. #### System Justification Theory (SJT) - Jost & Banaji - **Definition:** People are motivated to defend, legitimize, and justify the status quo, even if it is to their own disadvantage. - **Key Constructs:** - **Palliative Ideology:** System-justifying beliefs reduce negative affect (e.g., guilt, anxiety) associated with inequality. - **False Consciousness:** Members of disadvantaged groups endorse beliefs that legitimize their own oppression. - **Compensatory Stereotypes:** Positive stereotypes about disadvantaged groups (e.g., "poor but happy") that justify their position. - **Measurement:** System justification scales. - **Criticisms:** Can be seen as too deterministic; neglects agency and resistance. - **Links to other theories:** Explains why disadvantaged groups might not engage in collective action despite injustice (contrasts with SIMCA). Related to RWA and SDO in maintaining social order. #### Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) - Pratto et al. - **Definition:** A general orientation toward the acceptance or rejection of group-based social hierarchies. - **Key Constructs:** - **Group-based Hierarchy:** Belief that some groups are inherently superior and should dominate others. - **Legitimizing Myths:** Ideologies, values, and beliefs that provide moral and intellectual justification for social hierarchy (e.g., "meritocracy"). - **Hierarchy-Enhancing Institutions:** Institutions that promote group-based inequality (e.g., military, corporations). - **Hierarchy-Attenuating Institutions:** Institutions that seek to reduce group-based inequality (e.g., human rights organizations). - **SDO-D (Dominance):** Preference for active oppression and domination of lower-status groups. - **SDO-E (Egalitarianism):** Opposition to group-based hierarchy and a desire for equality. - **Measurement:** SDO scale (e.g., "Some groups are just more worthy than others"). - **Criticisms:** May overlap with other constructs; not universally applicable across all cultures. - **Links to other theories:** Predicts prejudice and support for policies that maintain inequality. Strong correlations with RWA. #### Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) - Altemeyer - **Definition:** A set of personality traits and attitudes characterized by submission to established authority, aggression towards outgroups or norm violators, and adherence to conventional social norms. - **Key Constructs:** - **Authoritarian Submission:** High degree of deference to perceived legitimate authorities. - **Authoritarian Aggression:** General aggressiveness directed toward various persons, sanctioned by established authorities. - **Conventionalism:** Strong adherence to social conventions and traditions. - **Measurement:** RWA scale (e.g., "Our country needs a strong leader who will make us obey strict rules"). - **Criticisms:** Originally developed in a Western context; "right-wing" label can be misleading in non-Western political systems. - **Links to other theories:** Predicts prejudice, political conservatism, and support for punitive policies. Correlates with SDO, but distinct (SDO focuses on group hierarchy, RWA on social order). ### Duckitt's Dual-Process Model - **Definition:** Explains how RWA and SDO arise from different worldviews and lead to distinct forms of prejudice. - **Pathways:** - **SDO Pathway:** - **Core Personality Trait:** Low Agreeableness (tendency towards competitiveness, cynicism). - **Socialization/Worldview:** Leads to a **Competitive/Dangerous Worldview** (belief that the world is a dog-eat-dog place, resources are scarce). - **Attitude:** Results in **Prejudice toward Low-Status/Competitive Groups** (e.g., immigrants, welfare recipients). - **RWA Pathway:** - **Core Personality Trait:** Low Openness to Experience (tendency towards conventionality, resistance to change). - **Socialization/Worldview:** Leads to a **Dangerous/Threatening Worldview** (belief that the world is full of moral threats, chaos, and disorder). - **Attitude:** Results in **Prejudice toward Deviant/Threatening Groups** (e.g., LGBTQ+ individuals, protestors, drug users). - **Measurement:** SDO and RWA scales, personality inventories (Big Five). - **Implication:** Highlights distinct psychological roots for different types of prejudice and political attitudes. ### Hawkish Ideology & Political Attitudes #### Militarism, Nationalism, Threat Perception - **Militarism:** Belief in the necessity and desirability of a strong military, military solutions to international problems, and the glorification of military virtues. - **Nationalism:** Strong identification with one's nation, often accompanied by a belief in its superiority and a desire for its advancement. Can be benign (civic nationalism) or aggressive (ethnic nationalism). - **Threat Perception:** Cognitive process of identifying and evaluating potential dangers to one's group or nation. Can be realistic (actual danger) or symbolic (threat to values/culture, as per ITT). - **Function:** These attitudes often coalesce to support "hawkish" foreign policy, characterized by aggressive diplomacy, military intervention, and high defense spending. - **Measurement:** Scales assessing support for military, national pride, and perceived threats. - **Links to other theories:** SIT (national identity), RWA (submission to national authority, aggression against external threats), SDO (national dominance). #### Moral Foundations Theory (MFT) - Haidt - **Definition:** Proposes that human morality is based on an innate, universal set of moral intuitions or "foundations." - **Key Foundations (original 5, sometimes 6):** - **Care/Harm:** Protecting others from harm. - **Fairness/Cheating:** Justice, equality, proportionality. - **Loyalty/Betrayal:** Group cohesion, patriotism. - **Authority/Subversion:** Respect for tradition and legitimate authority. - **Sanctity/Degradation:** Purity, disgust, sacredness. - *(Liberty/Oppression - sometimes added):* Resentment of domination. - **Political Relevance:** Liberals tend to prioritize Care and Fairness; conservatives tend to value all five/six foundations more equally, especially Loyalty, Authority, and Sanctity. - **Measurement:** Moral Foundations Questionnaire (MFQ). - **Implication:** Explains ideological differences in moral reasoning and policy preferences. ### Research Methods in Political Psychology - **Surveys & Questionnaires:** - **Method:** Self-report measures (e.g., SDO scale, RWA scale, political ideology questions). - **Pros:** Efficient, large N, generalizable (if representative sample). - **Cons:** Self-report biases (social desirability), limited causal inference, superficial responses. - **Experiments (Lab & Field):** - **Method:** Manipulation of independent variables, random assignment, control groups. - **Pros:** Strongest for causal inference, control over extraneous variables. - **Cons:** Artificiality (lab), ethical constraints, generalizability challenges (lab). - **Examples:** Minimal Group Paradigm (lab), "get out the vote" interventions (field). - **Content Analysis:** - **Method:** Systematic coding of text, images, or speeches (e.g., political rhetoric, media coverage). - **Pros:** Non-reactive, can analyze large datasets, historical analysis. - **Cons:** Subjectivity in coding, only reveals what is communicated. - **Qualitative Methods (Interviews, Focus Groups, Ethnography):** - **Method:** In-depth exploration of experiences, meanings, and processes. - **Pros:** Rich, nuanced data, understanding of context, hypothesis generation. - **Cons:** Small N, limited generalizability, researcher bias. - **Psychophysiological Measures:** - **Method:** Measuring biological responses (e.g., fMRI, EDA, eye-tracking) to political stimuli. - **Pros:** Objective, non-conscious responses, insight into neural processes. - **Cons:** Expensive, complex interpretation, ethical concerns. - **Big Data & Computational Methods:** - **Method:** Analyzing large-scale datasets (e.g., social media, voting records) using statistical and machine learning techniques. - **Pros:** Real-world behavior, large N, patterns otherwise undetectable. - **Cons:** Data privacy, spurious correlations, ethical implications. ### Historical Eras in Political Psychology - **Early 20th Century (Pre-WWII):** - **Focus:** Mass psychology, crowd behavior (Le Bon), propaganda, national character studies, psychobiography of leaders. - **Key Figures:** Gustav Le Bon, Harold Lasswell. - **Context:** Rise of totalitarian regimes, world wars. - **Mid-20th Century (Post-WWII - 1970s):** - **Focus:** Authoritarianism (Adorno's F-scale), democratic personality, political socialization, Cold War ideologies. - **Key Figures:** Theodor Adorno, Seymour Martin Lipset, Herbert Hyman. - **Context:** Cold War, McCarthyism, civil rights movement. - **Late 20th Century (1970s - 1990s):** - **Focus:** Social identity (SIT), relative deprivation, cognitive approaches to political judgment, intergroup conflict, political cognition. - **Key Figures:** Henri Tajfel, John Turner, Robert Abelson, Philip Tetlock. - **Context:** Rise of social psychology, challenges to traditional political science. - **Early 21st Century (2000s - Present):** - **Focus:** Neuro-political psychology, implicit attitudes, affective neuroscience, SDO/RWA, moral foundations, political communication in digital age, political extremism. - **Key Figures:** John Jost, Jim Sidanius, Marc Hauser, Jonathan Haidt, Drew Westen, Kevin Arceneaux. - **Context:** Rise of neuroscience, social media, increased political polarization, global terrorism.