Research publication
How issue opinions relate to individual-level affective polarization: Exploring the psychological mechanisms of affective polarization regarding immigration in a multi-party setting
Kim Strandberg, Jesper Eklund, Janne Berg, Janette Huttunen, Daniel Kawecki, Marina Lindell
International Political Science Review
View publicationAbstract
This study explores how differing opinions on immigration relate to affective polarization via either moderation or mediation by two factors: (i) emotional attachment to people with similar opinions to oneself; and (ii) perceived threat from people with opposing views to oneself. The data for the study (n = 2,291) were collected from a representative online panel among Swedish-speaking Finns, a setting in which partisan animosity is low and the potential for issue-based polarization is higher. The key findings are that opinions on immigration relate to affective polarization on immigration, and this is mainly as either a moderation or mediation by emotional attachment and perceived threats. Pro-immigration citizens exhibit higher levels of affective polarization than those who are anti-immigration. Furthermore, we find that affective polarization among anti-immigration citizens is mainly moderated and mediated by perceived threat whereas it is mainly moderated and mediated by emotional attachment for those who are pro-immigration.