How Propaganda Manipulates Emotion to Fuel Nationalism: Evidence from China

• In Event: Politics of Emotions and Protest under Authoritarianism

Abstract

How does propaganda change minds? In this article, we contribute to an emerging literature in the political psychology of autocracy, arguing that propaganda can cause durable changes in political attitudes by manipulating emotions such as anger. We conduct a series of experiments in which we expose over 6,800 respondents in China to real nationalist propaganda videos drawn from state-run newscasts, television dramas, and state-backed social media accounts, each containing nationalist messages favored by the Chinese Communist Party. Exposure to propaganda increases anger as well as anti-foreign sentiment and behavior, with heightened anti-foreign attitudes persisting up to a week. Yet we also find that nationalist propaganda has no effect on perceptions of Chinese government performance or self-reported willingness to protest against the state. These findings cut against an important conventional wisdom that nationalist messages directly build support for autocratic regimes.

Authors

• Daniel Mattingly, Yale University

• Elaine Yao, Princeton University