Public Opinion and the Politics of Individualism

• In Event: Investigating the 2016 U.S. Presidential Election

Abstract

Political historians and observers of American politics have noted distinctive features about the values held by Americans such as equality and individualism. Subsequent work identified the specific dimensions of these values and the ways in which they provide a framework of support for policies or political regimes. Lately, individualism has received more attention because of its perceived linkage to current anxieties within the American republic. In this paper, we explore the idea of individualism and the way it has been used in political research. Not surprisingly, political scientists, for the most part, emphasize the economic aspects of individualism. However, we propose thinking about other dimensions of individualism because of the ways in which these dimensions have become salient in modern political life. We take steps at developing and testing a dimension of individualism, assertive individualism, that has been central to the American experience: the recognition of authority external to the self. We test this measure in a variety of different survey settings, some in the midst of the 2016 presidential election. We further compare assertive individualism to measures of individualism as they have appeared in survey batteries used by PEW, ANES, and CCES, most of which borrow heavily from notions of economic individualism. The results indicate that assertive individualism is indeed a significant value that helps to understand much of modern political attitudes and choices. Furthermore, we find that this individualism performs well at helping to explain difficult choices that individuals need to make between candidates and in the assessment of modern civic institutions. Individuals who have a less individualistic outlook show less support for Donald Trump and more support for a modern social movement such as Black Lives Matter. The results indicate that more work needs to be done to deepen and enrich our understanding of modern manifestation of individualism and its implications for the 18th century political institutions that witnessed its birth. Indeed, the salience of this dimension may shed light on questions of how to create legitimacy in an age in which individuals increasingly doubt authority external to the self.

Authors

• Kelly D. Patterson, Brigham Young University

• Christopher F. Karpowitz, Brigham Young University