Work

Is the Internet Causing Political Polarization? Evidence from Demographics

Year: 2017

Type: report

Abstract: We combine nine previously proposed measures to construct an index of political polarization among US adults.We find that the growth in polarization in recent years is largest for the demographic groups least likely to use the internet and social media.For example, our overall index and eight of the nine individual measures show greater increases for those older than 75 than for those aged 18-39.These facts argue against the hypothesis that the internet is a primary driver of rising political polarization.

Source: National Bureau of Economic Research

DOI: 10.3386/w23258

Authors: Levi Boxell, Matthew Gentzkow, Jesse Shapiro

Institutions: National Bureau of Economic Research, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, Stanford University, Brown University

Language: English

Topic: Social Media and Politics

Subfield: Communication

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funders: Brown University, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research

OpenAlex ID: W2604584490

Cites: 16

Cited by: 226

Related to: 10