TY - JOUR
T1 - Testing the social pressure hypothesis
T2 - Does in-party social pressure reduce out-party empathy?
AU - Pradella, Lea
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of National Academy of Sciences.
PY - 2024/10
Y1 - 2024/10
N2 - Empathy is considered one of the most critical components for bridging political divides and reducing animosity between political groups. Yet, empathy between political opponents is rare. There is a growing concern that partisans do not empathize with out-partisans because they feel social pressure from fellow in-partisans not to do so. This article examines this social pressure hypothesis and draws two conclusions. First, on the surface, the hypothesis seems plausible: citizens perceive fellow in-partisans as comparatively disapproving of and reluctant to engage in out-party empathy, and naïve cross-sectional analyses suggest that this perception translates into lower empathy towards out-partisans. Second, however, experimental data suggest that this relationship is not causal. Expecting disapproval from fellow in-party members for empathizing with out-partisans does not lead to a significant reduction in intentions to empathize with out-partisans. Rather, exploratory analyses suggest that social pressure by the in-party increases empathy toward out-partisans and triggers disappointment toward in-partisans. This implies that partisans can resist social pressure from the in-party and might even compensate for in-partisans’ lack of out-party empathy. The results are supported by original cross-sectional and experimental survey data (N = 2,535) collected in the United States, an arguably most likely case for in-party social pressure to shape partisans’ intentions. The results have important implications for understanding the causes of and viable strategies for building empathy across political divides.
AB - Empathy is considered one of the most critical components for bridging political divides and reducing animosity between political groups. Yet, empathy between political opponents is rare. There is a growing concern that partisans do not empathize with out-partisans because they feel social pressure from fellow in-partisans not to do so. This article examines this social pressure hypothesis and draws two conclusions. First, on the surface, the hypothesis seems plausible: citizens perceive fellow in-partisans as comparatively disapproving of and reluctant to engage in out-party empathy, and naïve cross-sectional analyses suggest that this perception translates into lower empathy towards out-partisans. Second, however, experimental data suggest that this relationship is not causal. Expecting disapproval from fellow in-party members for empathizing with out-partisans does not lead to a significant reduction in intentions to empathize with out-partisans. Rather, exploratory analyses suggest that social pressure by the in-party increases empathy toward out-partisans and triggers disappointment toward in-partisans. This implies that partisans can resist social pressure from the in-party and might even compensate for in-partisans’ lack of out-party empathy. The results are supported by original cross-sectional and experimental survey data (N = 2,535) collected in the United States, an arguably most likely case for in-party social pressure to shape partisans’ intentions. The results have important implications for understanding the causes of and viable strategies for building empathy across political divides.
KW - in-party meta-perceptions
KW - out-party empathy
KW - polarization
KW - social pressure
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85207125417&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae358
DO - 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae358
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 39411089
AN - SCOPUS:85207125417
SN - 2752-6542
VL - 3
JO - PNAS Nexus
JF - PNAS Nexus
IS - 10
M1 - pgae358
ER -