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Partisan styles of self-presentation in U.S. Twitter bios
Liam Essig1,2, Daniel DellaPosta3,4
1Department of Sociology and Criminology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA. lwe5065@psu.edu.
Political polarization extends beyond issues to culture and lifestyle. Analysis of 1 million Twitter bios shows partisan differences in self-presentation, even in apolitical references, revealing social media
Area of Science:
- Social Sciences
- Computational Social Science
- Political Science
Background:
- Political polarization in the United States increasingly transcends policy debates.
- It now encompasses cultural, lifestyle, and social identity markers previously considered apolitical.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how partisan self-presentation on social media incorporates cultural and political markers.
- To analyze partisan differences in user self-descriptions on social media platforms.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of a large dataset of 1 million Twitter bios.
- Representation of Twitter bio text as semantic networks.
- Statistical inference of political alignment from non-explicitly partisan language.
Main Results:
- Clear partisan differences were identified in how users describe themselves, even on seemingly apolitical topics.
- Political alignments of active Twitter users could be statistically inferred from non-political references in their bios.
- Findings indicate partisan polarization is aligned with lifestyle preferences.
Conclusions:
- Political polarization is evident in lifestyle preferences and social identity markers presented on social media.
- Social media may promote polarization through the presentation of cultural and lifestyle preferences, not solely through discourse.
- Further research is needed to explore user awareness and the politicization of lifestyle choices.
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