Review Article: Putting Polarization in Perspective

Scholarly research has demonstrated rather conclusively that American political elites have undergone a marked partisan polarization over the past thirty years. There is less agreement, however, as to whether the American electorate is polarized. This review article evaluates the evidence, causes an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:British journal of political science 2009-04, Vol.39 (2), p.413-448
Main Author: Hetherington, Marc J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
20th century
Committees
Elites
Ideology
Legislative Bodies
Nominations
Partisanship
Polarization
Policy
Political parties
Political science
Politics
Presidential elections
Primaries & caucuses
Slavery
United States of America
Voter behavior
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Summary:Scholarly research has demonstrated rather conclusively that American political elites have undergone a marked partisan polarization over the past thirty years. There is less agreement, however, as to whether the American electorate is polarized. This review article evaluates the evidence, causes and consequences of polarization on both the elite and mass levels. A marked difference between the two is found. Elites are polarized by almost any definition, although this state of affairs is quite common historically. In contrast, mass attitudes are now better sorted by party, but generally not polarized. While it is unclear whether this potentially troubling disconnect between centrist mass attitudes and extreme elite preferences has negative policy consequences, it appears that the super-majoritarian nature of the US Senate serves as a bulwark against policy outcomes that are more ideologically extreme than the public would prefer. Moreover, a public more centrist than those who represent it has also at times exerted a moderating influence on recent policies.
ISSN:0007-1234
1469-2112
DOI:10.1017/S0007123408000501