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Forgas, Joseph P., William D. Crano, and Klaus Fiedler, eds. The Psychology of Populism: The Tribal Challenge to Liberal Democracy. Routledge, 2021.
Description
The recent rise of populist politics represent a major challenge for liberal democracies. This important book explores the psychological reasons for the rise of populism, featuring contributions from leading international researchers in the fields of psychology and political science.
Unlike liberal democracy based on the Enlightenment values of individual freedom, autonomy and rationality, both right-wing and left-wing populism offer collectivist, autocratic formulations reminiscent of the evolutionary history and tribal instincts of our species. The book offers a comprehensive overview of the psychology of populism, covering such phenomena as identity seeking, anger and fear, collective narcissism, grievance, norms, perceptions of powerlessness and deprivation, authoritarianism, nationalism, radicalism, propaganda and persuasion, ethnocentrism, xenophobia and the effects of globalization.
The book is divided into four parts. Part I deals with the motivational and emotional factors that attract voters to populist causes, and the human needs and values that populist movements satisfy. Part II analyzes the cognitive features of populist appeals, especially their emphasis on simplicity, epistemic certainty and moral absolutism. Part III turns to one of the defining features of populism: its offer of a powerful tribal identity and collectivist ideology that provide meaning and personal significance to its followers. Finally, in Part IV, the propaganda tactics used by populist movements are analysed, including the role of charismatic leadership, authoritarianism, and nationalism and the use of conspiracy narratives and persuasive strategies.
This is fascinating reading on a highly topical issue. The book will be of interest to students, researchers, and applied professionals in all areas of psychology and the social sciences as a textbook or reference book, and to anyone interested in the global rise of populism.
Table of contents
- The Psychology of Populism: The Tribal Challenge to Liberal Democracy
Joseph P. Forgas and William D. Crano - Part I What Populists Want: Motivational and Emotional Factors in Populism
- Populism and the Social Psychology of Grievance
Peter H. Ditto, Christian G. Rodriguez - Socio-Psychological Analysis of the Deterioration of Democracy and the Rise of Authoritarianism: The Role of Needs, Values, and Context
Daniel Bar-Tal, Tamir Magal - Beyond Populism: The Psychology of Status-Seeking and Extreme Political Discontent
Michael Bang Petersen, Mathias Osmundsen, Alexander Bar - The Rise of Populism: The politics of Justice, Anger, and Grievance
George E. Marcus - Collective Narcissism and the Motivational Underpinnings of the Populist Backlash
Agnieszka Golec de Zavala, Drottya Lantos, Oliver Keenan
- Populism and the Social Psychology of Grievance
- Part II The Populist Mind: Cognitive Aspects of Populism
- Psychological Perversities and Populism
Joachim I. Krueger, David J. Grüning - Overconfidence in Radical Politics
Jan-Willem van Prooijen - Why Populism Attracts: On the Allure of Certainty and Dignity
Arie W. Kruglanski, Erica Molinario, Gilda Sensales - A Non-Populist Perspective on Populism in Psychological Science
Klaus Fiedler
- Psychological Perversities and Populism
- Part Part III The Tribal Call
- Self-Uncertainty and Populism: Why We Endorse Populist Ideologies, Identify With Populist Groups, and Support Populist Leaders
Michael A. Hogg, Oluf Gøtzsche-Astrup - When Populism Triumphs: From Democracy to Autocracy
Joseph P. Forgas, Dorottya Lantos - Populism in Power: The Tribal Challenge
Péter Krekó - The Rise of Populism in the USA: Nationalism, Race, and American Party Politics
Leonie Huddy, Alessandro Del Ponte - Threat, Tightness, and the Evolutionary Appeal of Populist Leaders
Michele J. Gelfand, Rebecca Lorente
- Self-Uncertainty and Populism: Why We Endorse Populist Ideologies, Identify With Populist Groups, and Support Populist Leaders
- Part Part IV Populist Narratives and Propaganda
- Social Psychological Contributions to the Study of Populism: Minority Influence and Leadership Processes in the Rise and Fall of Populist Movements
William D. Crano, Amber M. Gaffney - Value Framing and Support for Populist Propaganda
Joel Cooper, Joseph Avery - Rapid Social Change and the Emergence of Populism
Robin R. Vallacher, Eli Fennell - Authoritarianism, Education, and Support for Right-Wing Populism
Stanley Feldman
- Social Psychological Contributions to the Study of Populism: Minority Influence and Leadership Processes in the Rise and Fall of Populist Movements
