Urban Echo Chambers? The Effect of Population Density on Political Homogeneity

• In Event: The Importance of Place and Identity in Public Opinion & Political Behavior

Abstract

Proximity to others can cause individuals to develop attitudes and beliefs that are similar to those of their neighbors. It may thus be reasonable to suppose that homogeneity of attitudes and beliefs could be greater in areas where people live close to others than it is in areas where there is less close interaction. We use party vote share by district to estimate levels of political homogeneity in each district, and we use population density data to investigate whether political homogeneity is greater or less within more urban areas than it is within more rural areas.

Authors

• James Cragun, Stony Brook University

• Hyun A Kim, Stony Brook University