What Counts as Incivility in the Trump Era?

• In Event: Civil Discourse and Social Media in Contemporary American Politics

Abstract

When Twitter attacks, impolite debates, and a lack of comity are commonplace, it is important to investigate whether citizens’ understanding of political incivility is in flux. This study explores what citizens consider to be uncivil in the context of 2018 U.S. politics. Approximately 1,000 participants, recruited through SSI, provided examples of political incivility. We conducted content analysis of these examples, then determined whether individual differences, partisan identity, and/or media use drove differences in the types of incivility produced by individuals. The results are compared to incivility examples collected in 2015 to explore whether understandings of incivility change in times of democratic discontent.

Authors

• Ashley Muddiman, University of Kansas

• Michael Kearney, University of Kansas