1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910255280003321

Autore

Dusso Aaron

Titolo

Personality and the Challenges of Democratic Governance : How Unconscious Thought Influences Political Understanding / / by Aaron Dusso

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Cham : , : Springer International Publishing : , : Imprint : Palgrave Macmillan, , 2017

ISBN

3-319-53603-6

Edizione

[1st ed. 2017.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (XV, 203 p. 6 illus.)

Disciplina

324.6

Soggetti

Elections

Political science

America - Politics and government

Personality

Difference (Psychology)

Electoral Politics

Political Science

American Politics

Personality and Differential Psychology

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

1. Democratic Demands and Citizen Capabilities -- 2. Ideological Cognitive Dissonance -- 3. Just the Facts: Citizen Issue Comprehension -- 4. Connecting Attitudes to Party Positions -- 5. Hidden State and the Punitive Public -- 6. Personality’s Role in Shaping Civic Aptitude.

Sommario/riassunto

This book examines how the five-factor model of personality (also known as the Big Five)—extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, emotional stability/neuroticism, and openness to experience—influence individuals’ ability to understand and engage in four areas of civic life. First, it documents how personality influences individuals when connecting abstract concepts like liberal or conservative to specific public policy preferences. Second, it demonstrates how understanding basic political facts is often conditional on these traits. Third, it tests the role that personality plays



in citizens’ capacity to fulfill the basic demands that democratic governance places on them, such as connecting their own policy preferences to the correct political party. Fourth, it reveals how personality traits can blind people to the role government plays in their lives, while simultaneously causing them to vilify more visible beneficiaries of government programs. Ultimately, this book will engage both scholars and civic-minded individuals interested in understanding the hidden factors driving political behavior.