Political

Tribalism

Articles/Op-eds/Essays

  • One Thing We Can Agree On Is That We’re Becoming a Different Country, Thomas B. Edsall. "A highly charged ideological transition reflecting a ‘massive four-decade-long shift in political values and attitudes among more educated people — a shift from concern with traditional materialist issues like redistribution to a concern for public goods like the environment and diversity’ is a driving force in the battle between left and right..." (read more)

  • You Might be Getting Your Politics from Your Group, Tom Jacobs. “New research explains how America's political divide is fueled by group dynamics (not just differences of opinion). It’s a puzzle: Average Americans aren’t especially ideological, but our political polarization is intense and growing. If we’re not driven by fierce convictions, why the disdain for the other side?

    New research provides an unsettling answer. While most people aren’t all that invested in public policy, we are all driven by a deep impulse to divide the world between “them” and “us.” We instinctively identify with one side of the political divide, and view the other as the enemy. (read more)

  • The QAnon Delusion Has Not Loosened Its Grip, Thomas B. Edsall. “Millions of Americans continue to actively participate in multiple conspiracy theories. Why?”

  • America, We Have a Problem, Thomas B. Edsall. “The rise of “political sectarianism” is putting us all in danger....The antagonism between left and right has become so intense that words and phrases like “affective polarization” and “tribalism” [are] no longer sufficient to capture the level of partisan hostility."

  • Ideologues without Issues: The Polarizing Consequences of Ideological Identities, Lilliana Mason

  • Trump’s ‘Winning’ Is America’s Losing, Lilliana Mason

  • How the Storming of the Capitol Became a ‘Normal Tourist Visit’, Thomas B. Edsall. "...While this mass amnesia seems incomprehensible to some, an August 2019 paper, “Tribalism Is Human Nature,” by Cory Jane Clark, the executive director of the Adversarial Collaboration Research Center at the University of Pennsylvania, and three fellow psychologists, provides fundamental insight into the evanescing impact of Jan. 6 on the electorate..." (read more)

  • Political Tribalism: “Ideologues without Issues.” “Some political battles are win-lose. You have capital punishment or you don’t. You outlaw all abortion or you don’t. You tell people who criticize you to “go home” or you don’t. But most battles are subject to compromise, and all battles can be waged with an open desire for reconciliation and a commitment to maximize understanding and minimize suffering. Activism rooted in deep nonviolence holds promise for lasting progress. Security rests in establishing the Beloved Community and the 99% for the 100%. If Americans become aware of their irrational impulses, we can develop a new identity — humane American — and focus on concrete policy improvements in a rational manner (see “Americans for Humanity”).

    Nevertheless, angry political tribes are tearing the country apart. Driven by primal passions, they call themselves “liberals” and “conservatives.” But their policy beliefs are secondary. What matters most is tribal victory.” 

Books
Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Became our Identity (2018), Lilliana Mason (see “Democrats, Border Walls, and Social Polarization”).