CoWell Brown Bag Research Seminar: Reconceptualizing Political Ideology

Reconceptualizing Political Ideology: Implications for Conflict-Related Attitudes and Emotions
 
The concept of political ideology has reappeared as a powerful construct in (social) psychology. Many empirical studies have examined the personality and cognitive-motivational bases of ideology, the effects of ideology on attitudes, political behavior and other conflict-related outcomes, and the processes underlying these relations. The conceptualization and operationalization of political ideology itself, however, has received less scholarly attention. Most studies are based on a simple bipolar model of ideology that contrasts “conservatives” and “liberals”, or on a two-dimensional model that additionally distinguishes between the social-cultural and the economic sphere. The present research reconceptualizes political ideology in terms of socially shared complex systems of beliefs about the ideal arrangement of society. Based on a representative online survey (N = 402), we show that German citizens‘ alignment with such belief systems is a valid measure of ideological orientation and a strong predictor of conflict-related attitudes and emotions toward Muslims in Germany, beyond traditional measures of political ideology.
 
 

For further information about CoWell and the Brown Bag Research Seminars please contact Prof. Dr. Guido Möllering.

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Reconceptualizing Political Ideology: Implications for Conflict-Related Attitudes and Emotions
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