When Politics Becomes Personal: The Effect of Partisan Identity on Anti-Democratic Behavior
Abstract
Can we be good partisans without demonizing our political opponents? Using insights from political science and social psychology, this book argues for the distinction between positive and negative partisanship. As such, strong support for a political party does not have to be accompanied by the vilification of the opposing party and its members. Utilizing data from five different countries, Bankert demonstrates that positive and negative partisanship are independent concepts with distinct consequences for political behavior, including citizens' political participation and their commitment to democratic norms and values. The book concludes with the hopeful message that partisanship is an essential pillar of representative and liberal democracy.
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Political sectarianism and affective polarization are highly related but distinct constructs.
“Political sectarianism and affective polarization thus appear to be highly related but distinct constructs (also see Bankert, 2024 on negative partisanship).”
From Measuring affective polarization: Matching concepts to measures (2026) · cites this paper as Bankert, 2024
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Measuring affective polarization: Matching concepts to measures
Druckman, J. N., Klar, S., Krupnikov, Y., Levendusky, M., & Ryan, J. B. (2026) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/pops.70152 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
- Authors
- Bankert, A.
- Affiliations
- University of Georgia (US)
- Corresponding author
- Bankert, Alexa
- ORCID
- Bankert, Alexa
- Venue
- Cambridge University Press eBooks
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press
- Published
- 2023-11-30
- OpenAlex
- W4390563853
- Cited by
- 25
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 16 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 3
- FWCI
- 137.13
- Type
- book
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Cambridge University Press eBooks (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Electoral Systems and Political Participation
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Political Theory and Democracy
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
- Keywords
- negative partisanship, partisanship, political opposition, political participation, democratic norms, democratic values, representative democracy, liberal democracy, political attitudes
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