(iPoster) Affective Polarization and the Appeal of Dystopian Fiction

• In Event: Poster Sessions: Political Communication II & The Political Power of Film and Reality TV
  In Poster Session: Poster Session: The Political Power of Film and Reality TV

Abstract

At times of economic or political distress, dystopian fiction seems more salient. The United States has seen a rise in affective polarization, testing political institutions and social interactions. Is the appeal of dystopian fiction associated with affective polarization? We conducted a survey using a convenient sample of 426 college students. A battery of questions measured individuals' degree of affective polarization (Campos & Federico, 2025), and another set of items asked whether respondents liked specific examples of dystopian books, movies, and television shows that were likely to be familiar to individuals in the sample. For three of the works of fiction (Hunger Games, The 100, and The Giver), the degree of affective polarization was associated with liking the work, but the relationship depended upon party affiliation. Democrats with strong dislike for Republicans were more likely to like the show The 100, while Republicans with strong dislike for Democrats were less likely to like The Hunger Games or The Giver. Because the study cannot establish a direction of causation, we cannot say whether the appeal of dystopian fiction precedes affective polarization or the other way around, but these findings provide empirical evidence of the relevance of dystopian fiction to real-life political discord.

CAMPOS N, and FEDERICO C (2025). A New Measure of Affective Polarization. American Political Science Review. doi:10.1017/S0003055425000255

Author

• Jason Giersch, University of North Carolina, Charlotte