Keeping Your Mouth Shut
Spiraling Self-Censorship in the United States
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4295209 |
|---|---|
| Authors | James L Gibson (0000-0002-2571-6596, Washington University in St. Louis), Joseph L Sutherland (0000-0001-7291-1346, Emory University) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 138 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 361-376 |
| Publication date | 2023-08-31 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Political Science Quarterly (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0032-3195 • E-ISSN: 1538-165X |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/psquar/qqad037 |
| OpenAlex | W4379983170 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 15 |
Over the period from the heyday of McCarthyism to the present, the percentage of the American people not feeling free to express their views has tripled. In 2020, more than four in ten people engaged in self-censorship. Our analyses of over-time and cross-sectional variability suggest that, first, self-censorship is connected to affective polarization among the mass public, with greater polarization associated with more self-censorship. Second, levels of mass opposition to full civil liberties bear no relationship to self-censorship. Third, those who perceive a more repressive government are slightly more likely to self-censor. Fourth, conservatives report engaging in more self-censorship than liberals (but this is not true when comparing Republicans with Democrats). Together, these findings suggest that one's larger macro-environment may have little to do with self-censorship. Instead, micro-environment sentiments, such as worrying that expressing unpopular views will isolate and alienate people from their friends, family, and neighbors, may be the driver of self-censorship
Censorship · Civil liberties · Feeling · Goldstone · Opposition (politics · Polarization (electrochemistry · Political science · Politics · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Law · Psychology · Social Media and Politics · Social Psychology
Powered by (discrete) emotions? The consequences of affective polarization for self-censorship and outgroup silencing
Speaking freely or staying silent? Self-censorship and democratic discontent in Sweden
Examining the predictors of “Gen Z” college student intentions to vote & engage in politics
The Influence of Military Conflicts on the Psychological State of Society
Does Corporate Political Advocacy Wrong Shareholders
What's Wrong With Self‐Censorship
Turning a blind eye? Understanding citizens’ tolerance for protester violence
Breaking False Polarization
What is Freedom of Speech? How Citizens Define and Perceive the “Bulwark of Liberty”
What Would You Say? Estimating Causal Effects of Social Context on Political Expression
Unraveling a “Cancel Culture” Dynamic
Talking Politics in a Polarized America
Is There a Backlash Against Identity Politics? Experimental and Focus Group Evidence on the Conflict Over Gender-Neutral Language in Germany
Reluctance to Speak Your Mind
Partisan animosity and protest participation in the United States
| Citations per year | 5 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2023 - 2026 (4) |
| Highly cited | No |