Toward a More Useful Conceptualization of Populism: Types and Degrees of Populist Appeals in the Case of Slovakia

Abstract

Shifting our understanding of populism from a question of core identity to a description of party appeals allows for a neutralization of the term's negative connotations by allowing that all parties may use populist appeals to some extent. It is then possible to address a party's use of populist appeals by measuring its distinctly nonpopulist appeals, which are usually less bound up with normative judgments. Although the preliminary analysis of Slovakia shows a relatively close empirical fit among the theoretical elements in the existing literature, two categories of populist appeals are identified: the outward‐looking appeals that vary strongly with a party's relationship to power, and inward‐looking appeals that remain more stable over time. Use of these by politicians may offer clues to the origination, attractiveness, and longevity of populist and nonpopulist appeals. Cambiar nuestro entendimiento del populismo desde la cuestión de identidad a una que se enfoca en los llamados partidistas nos permite neutralizar la connotación negativa del término populismo puesto que nos lleva a reconocer que todos los partidos recurren a los llamados populistas en una medida u otra. Es entonces posible establecer el uso de los atractivos del populismo por parte del partido al medir sus atractivos no‐populistas, los cuales usualmente están menos vinculados con opiniones normativas. Aunque el análisis preliminar de Eslovaquia demuestra un ajuste empírico perfecto relativamente cerrado ent…