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How "Us" and "Them" Relates to Voting Behavior-Social Structure, Social Identities, and Electoral Choice
Simon Bornschier1, Silja Häusermann1, Delia Zollinger1
1University of Zurich, Switzerland.
Comparative Political Studies
|November 15, 2021
Summary
Voters
Area of Science:
- Political Science
- Sociology
- Social Psychology
Background:
- Advanced democracies exhibit a growing divide between the new left and the far right.
- This universalism-particularism divide is evolving into a significant political cleavage with structural, political, and identity dimensions.
- Limited research exists on voters' self-perceived identities shaping in-group and out-group boundaries within this divide.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the identities voters perceive as relevant to the universalism-particularism divide.
- To examine the politicization of these group identities among new left and far right voters.
- To understand how socio-demographic characteristics relate to culturally connoted identities in Switzerland's electoral realignment.
Main Methods:
- Original survey data from Switzerland, a key case of electoral realignment.
- Analysis of voter-perceived identities and their connection to socio-demographic factors.
- Assessment of the extent to which group identities politicize and divide voters along the left-right spectrum.
Main Results:
- Voter socio-demographic characteristics are linked to distinct, culturally-based identities.
- These group identities are significantly politicized, effectively dividing new left and far right voters.
- The universalism-particularism cleavage influences issue bundling and shapes voter self-perception within group conflicts.
Conclusions:
- The universalism-particularism divide is a potent force shaping political identity and group conflict in advanced democracies.
- Cultural identities play a crucial role in solidifying the new left-far right political cleavage.
- Understanding these politicized identities is key to comprehending contemporary electoral realignments and group conflicts.
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