The Moderating Effect of Debates on Political Attitudes
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6231858 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sarah Brierley (0000-0002-0902-6763, London School of Economics and Political Science), Eric Kramon (0000-0001-8299-4018, George Washington University), George Kwaku Ofosu (0000-0003-4112-0749, London School of Economics and Political Science) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 64 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 19-37 |
| Publication date | 2020-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | American Journal of Political Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0092-5853 • E-ISSN: 1540-5907 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/ajps.12458 |
| OpenAlex | W2968517197 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 19 |
| References cited | 41 |
In theory, candidate debates can influence voters by providing information about candidates' quality and policy positions. However, there is limited evidence about whether and why debates influence voters in new democracies. We use a field experiment on parliamentary debates during Ghana's 2016 elections to show that debates improve voters' evaluations of candidates. Debates have the strongest effect on partisan voters, who becomemorefavorable toward and more likely to vote for opponent‐party candidates and less likely to vote for co‐partisans. Experimental and unique observational data capturing participants' second‐by‐second reactions to the debates show that policy information was the most important causal mechanism driving partisan moderation, especially among strong partisans. A follow‐up survey shows that these effects persist in electorally competitive communities, whereas they dissipate in party strongholds. Policy‐centered debates have the potential to reduce partisan polarization in new democracies, but the local political context conditions the persistence of these effects
Context (archaeology · Economics · Epistemology · Geography · Mechanism (biology · Moderation · Polarization (electrochemistry · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Sociology · Survey data collection · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Law · Media Influence and Politics · Political Conflict and Governance · Psychology · Social Psychology
Political economy and structural transformation
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Messages Matter
Presidential Debates and Electoral Preferences in Weakly Institutionalised Democracies
Closing the Gap
Hidden contestation
Candidate Debates and Partisan Divisions Evidence From Malawi’s 2019 Presidential Elections
Status-quo or Grievance Coalitions
Media Manipulation in Young Democracies
Protest and Incumbent Support
Chiefs’ Endorsements and Voter Behavior
Government Responsiveness in Developing Countries
The Effect of Sustained Transparency on Electoral Accountability
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Debates
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Looking Like a Winner
Moderation from Bias
Partisan Bias and the Bayesian Ideal in the Study of Public Opinion
How Quickly We Forget
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Informing the Electorate? How Party Cues and Policy Information Affect Public Opinion about Initiatives
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Does Participation Reinforce Patronage? Policy Preferences, Turnout and Class in Urban Ghana
Ethnicity and the Swing Vote in Africa’s Emerging Democracies
The Politics of Development Under Competitive Clientelism
Strategic voting, information, and ethnicity in emerging democracies
The case for motivated reasoning
What accountability pressures do MPs in Africa face and how do they respond? Evidence from Ghana
Unpacking the Black Box of Causality
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Cross-cutting Social Networks
Perverse Accountability
| Unique citing works | 19 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3,8 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2026 (6) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 19 |