Territorial disputes and affective polarization

Balcells, Laia; Daniels, Lesley-Ann; Kuo, Alexander

doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1475-6765.12640

Territorial disputes and affective polarization

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Citation

Balcells L, Daniels LA, Kuo A. Territorial disputes and affective polarization. Eur J Polit Res. 2024 Aug;63(3):906-26. DOI: 10.1111/1475-6765.12640

Abstract

Can territorial disputes within countries be a basis for affective polarization? If so, how does it vary across territories? A burgeoning literature on affective polarization has largely focused on partisan divisions; we argue that contentious political issues such as those relating to territorial integrity can also be a basis for such affective polarization, where citizens feel concord with those sharing such policy preferences and animus for those who do not. We specify hypotheses about territorial-policy-based affective polarization and bring comparative survey evidence from three European regions with salient and contentious territorial claims: Scotland, Catalonia and Northern Ireland. While these three cases encompass different outcomes of territorial disputes, our results show strikingly similar levels of affective polarization.