Influences Shaping Political Views

Influences Shaping Political Views

There are several influences on political belief. Some of these influences include a combination of agents, such as family, peer groups, media, and culture. All these socialization agents influence the growth of a political ideology of an individual and behavior. The concept of ethnocentrism complicates further the way people tend to perceive political messages.

Influences on Political Views

Family

The family is generally regarded as the first agent of political socialization. Research indicates that a family’s disposition impacts children’s attitude toward politics, at least in so far as party identification and political ideology are concerned (Turan & Tiras, 2017). Children growing up within politically active families are likely to hold similar attitudes, especially where political talk in a family is frequent. However, this can change over time as individuals begin to question or move away from some of the family views inherited.

Peer Groups

Peer groups are an important social reference group through which existing political beliefs can either be strengthened or questioned. Communication between the members of these groups results in replication of the group’s beliefs among the members through conformity as well as pressure from the group. Turans and Tiras (2017) pointed out that often political talk with other people leads to political activity and make the opinions starker, although it can also have a positive effect of developing the opinions. This duality further emphasizes how peer influence can be beneficial in expanding one’s horizon and at the same time lead to the escalation of ideological polarization. 

Media

Out of the various domains of political socialization, media, especially social media platforms, has distorted opinion leaders. Türkmenoğlu (2023) showed that social media enhances agenda-setting, where people follow trusted influencers who set the topics and reiterate the perspectives on them. These platforms create echo chambers where algorithms promote content based on the user’s previous preferences, which, in turn, does not expose the user to a range of opinions and potential changes in beliefs (Türkmenoğlu, 2022).

Culture

Culture as well has the effect of being an influential factor in the formation of political perspective. According to Turan and Tiras (2017), values that stem from culture affect how people perceive political occurrences and politics in general. For example, ethnocentrism—the tendency to judge other cultural perspectives according to the benchmarks of an individual’s own culture—may determine prejudiced perceptions of political matters. This culture can greatly influence the voter behavior and opinion of the people in the whole population.

Ethnocentrism in the Context of Politics

Ethnocentrism is the belief in the superiority of one’s ethnic group and may therefore be a powerful factor in shaping political views and voting behaviors. According to Bizumic and Sheppard (2022), ethnocentrism is defined as an attitudinal construct based on ethnic group self-importance and cohesion. It manifests in political contexts by promoting policies that are in favor of the in-group while opposing those that benefit out-groups and often intensifies support for nationalism, informing perspectives on immigration, foreign relations, and social services. Such influence is peculiarly strongest in pluralistic countries like the United States, wherein converging and conflicting attitudes of ethnocentrism and nationalism emerge among a diverse population. In the political domain, this ethnocentrism may translate into support for candidates that advance policies in line with in-group loyalty (Bizumic & Sheppard, 2022). . Politicians take advantage of such a bias during electioneering as they usually expect support from such a disposition, especially among voters who give primacy to ethnic unity and in-group dominance.

Application to Harris and Trump Campaigns

The 2024 campaigns of Kamala Harris and Donald Trump reveal how the formation of political beliefs is influenced by the aforementioned factors, including ethnocentrism. The two campaigns asserted the influence of family bonds in deciding the electoral outcomes. Harris went for the moderate voters, which included those from the Republican Party that were concerned with issues around democracy and reproductive freedom. Trump, on the other hand, focused on reinforcing his support base and appealing to his voters using ethnocentric rhetoric that encouraged the supporters to be loyal to the cause of the party just like he did in 2016 (Fording & Schram, 2018). On top of that, Trump’s campaign applied peer dynamics to rally his support base by engaging them in social media and using organizing events. This strategy helped create unity among his supporters, which made them feel that they belonged and made them realize the need for them to go out and vote. In contrast, Harris tried to appeal to the undecided voters, using grass-roots appeal with community events to enable her to build a larger coalition.

Trump’s campaign leveraged social media to enhance his ethnocentric rhetoric, making a lot of issues fit into the “us” vs. “them” paradigm, mostly around immigration and national security topics. In his rhetoric, Trump focused on ‘protecting’ his in-group through policy actions while demonizing out-groups. This helped mobilize the vote but at the same time created voters’ polarization (Chidi, 2024). His rallies were purposely meant to reinforce this divide and further divide the voting base. On the other hand, Harris used specific ads to rebuff the narratives propagated by Trump and demonstrate her concern with diverse communities. Harris’s strategy tried to overcome this divide in order to counter Trump’s tribalist appeals for supporters.

References

Bizumic, B., & Sheppard, H. (2022). 12 A Political Psychology of Ethnocentrism. The Cambridge Handbook of Political Psychology, 198. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2574-4893

Chidi, G. (2024, November 5). A polarized America goes to the polls: “I’m in a house divided.” The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/nov/05/election-polarization-swing-state-voters-harris-trump

Fording, R. C., & Schram, S. F. (2018). Why Trump won: Outgroup hostility as the new ethnocentrism. In American Politics Workshop. https://www.roosevelthouse.hunter.cuny.edu/devdev/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/outgrouphostility040218.pdf

Turan, E., & Tiras, Ö. (2017). Family’s Impact on Individual’s Political Attitude and Behaviors. International Journal of Psycho-Educational Sciences, 6(2), 103-110. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1254813.pdf

Türkmenoğlu, A. T. (2023). The Role of the Media in the Process of Political Socialization: A Study on University Students. İnsan ve Toplum, 13(1), 401-439. https://orcid.org/10.12658/M0690