Are Populists Insecure About Themselves or About Their Country? Political Attitudes and Economic Perceptions.

Area of Science:

• Political Science
• Social Psychology
• Economics

Background:

• Economic insecurity is linked to political attitudes.
• Distinguishing between personal (micro) and national (macro) economic concerns is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between economic insecurity and political distrust.
• To examine the link between economic insecurity and authoritarian political tendencies.
• To determine if macro-level economic insecurity predicts negative attitudes toward out-groups and voting behavior.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the 2016 American National Election Studies dataset.
• Differentiated between micro (personal) and macro (national) economic insecurity.
• Employed regression analysis controlling for political affiliation and macroeconomic indicators.

Main Results:

• Macro-level economic insecurity, not micro-level, significantly correlates with increased political distrust and authoritarianism.
• Macro insecurity predicts greater negative attitudes toward minority groups and political figures.
• Findings remained robust after controlling for confounding variables.

Conclusions:

• Macroeconomic insecurity is a significant driver of political polarization and distrust in government.
• Weakening social safety nets and rising inequality exacerbate xenophobia, racism, and homophobia.
• Understanding economic insecurity's impact is vital for addressing political division and prejudice.