The current state of democracy in the United States is discussed in a new report.
The research shows that both Democrats and Republicans value democratic principles, such as free and fair elections, but underestimate opposing party members' support for them.
The willingness of Republicans to subvert democratic principles is related to the results of this biased underestimation.
The paper's lead author, Michael Pasek, is an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. They need to believe that democratic principles are similar to those of others.
"If people think that their opponents don't care about democracy, the prospect of political loss becomes intolerable, and anti-democratic behaviors may be perceived as justified, even necessary," Pasek said. The downward spiral of democratic practice may be caused by psychological biases.
Democrats and Republicans were asked to rate the importance of free and fair elections in two surveys. According to the survey results, both Democrats and Republicans value basic democratic principles, with average ratings for each group hovering around 90 on a scale from 0 to 100.
The researchers asked members of both parties how much they valued the same things. The average Democrat valued democratic characteristics more than the average Republican. The average Republican values democratic characteristics more than the average Democrat.
Given the high levels of Democrats' and Republicans' actual support for democratic principles, the researchers suggest that these wildly inaccurate misperceptions likely result from social psychological biases. The media landscape and anti-democratic behavior of some elites are likely to influence citizens misperceptions.
While more research is needed on the effectiveness of informational interventions to correct inaccurate intergroup perceptions, the researchers note that the current political climate requires more attention to hyper-partisan psychology.
Pasek said that strong democratic Norms ensure that parties have a fair chance to compete for power and that minority rights are protected. Studies of this kind can help inform the public at large and hopefully ease democratic erosion in the United States as we learn more about anti-democratic behavior by elected officials.
More information: Michael H. Pasek et al, Misperceptions about out-partisans' democratic values may erode democracy, Scientific Reports (2022). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-19616-4 Journal information: Scientific Reports
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