Negativity and Political Behavior: A Theoretical Framework for the Analysis of Negative Voting in Contemporary Democracies
| Date | 01 May 2022 |
| DOI | 10.1177/14789299211000187 |
| Author | Frederico Ferreira da Silva,Diego Garzia |
| Published date | 01 May 2022 |
| Subject Matter | State of the Art - Review Article |
https://doi.org/10.1177/14789299211000187
Political Studies Review
2022, Vol. 20(2) 282 –291
© The Author(s) 2021
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DOI: 10.1177/14789299211000187
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Negativity and Political
Behavior: A Theoretical
Framework for the Analysis
of Negative Voting in
Contemporary Democracies
Diego Garzia and Frederico Ferreira da Silva
Abstract
Recent developments in Western societies have motivated a growing consideration of the
role of negativity in public opinion and political behavior research. In this article, we review the
scant (and largely disconnected) scientific literature on negativity and political behavior, merging
contributions from social psychology, public opinion, and electoral research, with a view on
developing an integrated theoretical framework for the study of negative voting in contemporary
democracies. We highlight that the tendency toward negative voting is driven by three partly
overlapping components, namely, (1) an instrumental–rational component characterized by
retrospective performance evaluations and rationalization mechanisms, (2) an ideological
component grounded on long-lasting political identities, and (3) an affective component, motivated
by (negative) attitudes toward parties and candidates. By blueprinting the systematic relationships
between negative voting and each of these components in turn, and suggesting multiple research
paths, this article aims to stimulate future studies on negative voting in multi-party parliamentary
systems to motivate a better understanding of the implications of negativity in voting behavior in
contemporary democracies.
Keywords
comparative political behavior, negative partisanship, negative personalization, negative voting
Accepted: 15 February 2021
Introduction
While voters in democratic elections are called to the polls to express their preference in
favor of a given set of parties and candidates, it is well-established that a consistent pro-
portion of voters considers their electoral choice as a vote against. American research on
negative voting dates back to the 1960s. Yet, the more recent literature on the electoral
University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
Corresponding author:
Diego Garzia, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
Email: diego.garzia@unil.ch
1000187PSW0010.1177/14789299211000187Political Studies ReviewGarzia and Ferreira da Silva
review-article2021
State of the Art – Review Article
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