Populist Attitudes and Political Engagement: Ugly, Bad, and Sometimes Good?

Ardağ, M. Murat; Silva, Bruno Castanho; Thomeczek, Jan Philipp; Bandlow-Raffalski, Steffen F.; Littvay, Levente

doi:10.1080/00344893.2019.1661870

Cited by 15 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Figure 1 shows that the sample average level of populist attitudes hardly changed throughout the period of observation. This finding is in line with work referencing little change in aggregate distributions across countries as support for assuming stability of populist attitudes (see, for example, Ardag et al 2020). Yet, aggregate-level investigations may overshadow individual-level dynamics under the surface.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

“…This implies that – by and large – (non-)support for populist ideas is relatively stable and that populist attitudes are trait-like. To this point, Ardag et al argue that evidence based on cross-sectional studies has ‘shown […] remarkable stability of populist attitudes across countries, suggesting they are not volatile opinions’ (2020, 309). Further, supporting the stability view, multiple studies have explored links between populist attitudes and dispositional personality traits (Kenny and Bizumic 2023; Vasilopoulos and Jost 2020) and found some evidence for dispositional roots of populism (but see Fatke 2019).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Neither a Trait nor Wildly Fluctuating: On the Stability of Populist Attitudes and its Implications for Empirical Research

Schimpf,

Wuttke,

Schoen

2023

Brit. J. Polit. Sci.

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The literature on populist attitudes frequently makes one of two assumptions: populist attitudes are either stable or unstable. However, few studies have examined these diverging assumptions empirically. We use panel data collected over six panel waves between 2017 and 2021 in Germany to assess the stability of populist attitudes. Integrating inter-individual stability (variable-centred) and intra-individual stability (individual trajectories), we find that populist attitudes are neither fully stable (trait) nor fully flexible (state). For example, some respondents constantly changed their view on populism while the attitudes in one out of three individuals remained stable. We also explore empirical consequences and find that populist attitudes are more closely linked to vote choice when they are stable. Accordingly, we argue for a more nuanced understanding of the dynamics of populist attitudes, both at the variable and individual levels, where these attitudes are stable and consequential for only a subset of individuals.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 89%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Neither a Trait nor Wildly Fluctuating: On the Stability of Populist Attitudes and its Implications for Empirical Research

Schimpf,

Wuttke,

Schoen

2023

Brit. J. Polit. Sci.

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“…But it should be noted that populism is not to be perceived as a full -fledged attitude -it is more of a latent disposition whose activation depends on the context (Hawkins -Rovira Kaltwasser 2019: 7). This means that the populist predisposition remains quiescent until credible populist discourse and rhetoric trigger it (Ardag et al 2019).…”

Section: Populism and Its Componentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Populist attitudes in Croatia: first analysis with notes on conceptualisation and measurement

Vuksan-Ćusa

2023

Politics in Central Europe

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This paper analyses individual-level populism in Croatia. Starting from the ideational definition of populism, the study tests to what extent the economic grievances, sociocultural and ideational explanations, respectively, reflect the average populism subscriber in Croatia. The analysis was made using hierarchical linear regression based on field survey data from 2020 (n=979). Results show how populism is mostly associated with authoritarianism, conspiratorial thinking and institutional (dis)trust. The economic grievances explanation has only marginal relevance, revealing that sociotropic perception is more important than the socioeconomic position of the individual. Furthermore, the study emphasises the importance of operationalising populism in accordance with the assumed structure of the concept. In the same vein, it is noted that populism on an attitudinal level should be separated from the concepts of thick ideologies. If this is not done with caution, the conclusions drawn are questionable, and the analytical contribution of populism is imprecisely determined.

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“…In their article 'Populist Attitudes and Political Engagement: Ugly, Bad, and Sometimes Good? ', Ardag, Castanho Silva, Thomeczek, Bandlow-Raffalski, and Littvay (2019) investigate the claim that populist parties can be a positive force for representative democracy if they mobilise previously apathetic voters with the help of populist rhetoric. The argument is that if these parties bring non-voters to the ballot box, the overall pool of voters who are represented and actively involved in political decision-making increases.…”

Section: Key Findings Of This Special Issuementioning

confidence: 99%

Cure, Poison or Placebo? The Consequences of Populist and Radical Party Success for Representative Democracy

Giebler

Werner

2020

Representation

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The spread and success of radical and populist parties has triggered a profound debate on the state of democracy. Not only are these parties described as the outcome of a democratic malaise in which democratic regimes had ceased to integrate, represent and engage all their citizens. At the same time, questions arose as to the consequences of these parties for existing representative democracies. Could radical and populist parties be a (partial) cure to the woes of established democracies? Or would they make the democratic malaise even worse, further poisoning an already sick patient? Could it be that these parties act like a placebo that exists because of the democratic malaise but does not actually change anything except for those who desperately want to believe in an effect? The contributions to this Special Issue address questions of the impact of radical and populist parties on representative democracy. This introduction systematise their findings along party functions and draws broader conclusions.

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Populist Attitudes and Political Engagement: Ugly, Bad, and Sometimes Good?

Cited by 15 publications

References 56 publications

Neither a Trait nor Wildly Fluctuating: On the Stability of Populist Attitudes and its Implications for Empirical Research

Neither a Trait nor Wildly Fluctuating: On the Stability of Populist Attitudes and its Implications for Empirical Research

Populist attitudes in Croatia: first analysis with notes on conceptualisation and measurement

Cure, Poison or Placebo? The Consequences of Populist and Radical Party Success for Representative Democracy

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