The Science of Democracy and Elections
As we enter the 2024 election cycle, check out these research and insights into partisanship, voting, and more from Kellogg School of Management faculty. And for more, explore Kellogg Insight's Politics & Elections section.
![two political candidates back to back at podiums. one saying Justice the other saying honor.](/imager/clientcontent/363096/Full_0823_candidate_moral_language_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/363096/Full_0823_candidate_moral_language_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/363096/Full_0823_candidate_moral_language_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Organizations
It’s Election Season. Here Comes the Morally Charged Language.
In the U.S., presidential candidates across the political spectrum lean on value-laden rhetoric—but emphasize different values.
Kobi Hackenburg, William Brady and Manos Tsakiris
September 28, 2023
![person reaching through a computer screen to peel the face off of a politician in a deepfake advertisement](/imager/clientcontent/409002/Full_0624_deepfakes_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/409002/Full_0624_deepfakes_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/409002/Full_0624_deepfakes_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Organizations
How to Spot Political Deepfakes
AI literacy—and a healthy dose of human intuition—can take us pretty far.
Matthew Groh
July 1, 2024
![online users reading extreme content in vortex](/imager/clientcontent/234373/Social-media-and-xenophobia_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/234373/Social-media-and-xenophobia_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/234373/Social-media-and-xenophobia_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
How Trolls Poison Political Discussions for Everyone Else
Online political debate isn’t inherently toxic, a new study of Reddit commenters finds. Instead, it becomes toxic because of the kind of commenters who opt in.
Michalis Mamakos and Eli J. Finkel
March 1, 2024
![US electoral college map](/imager/clientcontent/372938/Full_1023_electoral_college_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/372938/Full_1023_electoral_college_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/372938/Full_1023_electoral_college_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
How the Electoral College May Curb Election Fraud
This distinctive aspect of American democracy has come under increased scrutiny. But the very quality that most vexes its critics comes with an underrecognized upside.
Georgy Egorov and Konstantin Sonin
October 2, 2023
![people building a bridge, with blue bricks from the left side and red bricks from the right side](/imager/clientcontent/331131/Full_1222_Political_divides_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/331131/Full_1222_Political_divides_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/331131/Full_1222_Political_divides_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
4 Science-Backed Strategies to Curb Partisan Animosity
Vilification of the other side is at a fever pitch. But research suggests ways to bridge the gap.
Eli J. Finkel and and coauthors
December 1, 2022
![People split at a fork in the road with road signs pointing to "What If?" in each direction](/imager/clientcontent/335671/Full_0123_counterfactual_thinking_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/335671/Full_0123_counterfactual_thinking_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/335671/Full_0123_counterfactual_thinking_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
Partisanship Doesn’t Just Color Our View of Facts—It Alters How We Think about Hypotheticals
New research sheds light on how polarization can shape our counterfactual thinking.
Kai Epstude, Daniel J. Effron and Neal J. Roese
January 1, 2023
![Office with manager and well-appointed subordinate cubicle sharing political affiliation](/imager/clientcontent/321791/Full_0922_political_workplace_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/321791/Full_0922_political_workplace_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/321791/Full_0922_political_workplace_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
Could Your Political Views Stymie Your Career?
From being hired to getting a promotion, new research shows you may be penalized for disagreeing politically with the boss.
Emanuele Colonnelli, Valdemar Pinho Neto and Edoardo Teso
September 1, 2022
![group of people protest in shadow of a statue to earlier protestors.](/imager/clientcontent/323769/Full_1022_protest_legacy_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/323769/Full_1022_protest_legacy_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/323769/Full_1022_protest_legacy_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
When Do People Protest and When Do They Just Grumble? History Offers Clues.
A tradition of anti-government uprisings can impact communities centuries later.
Meng Miao and Jacopo Ponticelli
October 1, 2022
![Donkey and elephant write on computers](/imager/clientcontent/264866/Full_0621_Government_Employees_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/264866/Full_0621_Government_Employees_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/264866/Full_0621_Government_Employees_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
Civil Servants Often Work for Administrations They Disagree with Politically. How Does This Affect Their Job Performance?
While the benefits of insulating career bureaucrats are clear, new research explores whether there are downsides, too.
Jörg L. Spenkuch, Edoardo Teso and Guo Xu
June 1, 2021
![illustration of two people putting ballots into ballot boxes](/imager/clientcontent/310160/Full_0622_Democracies_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/310160/Full_0622_Democracies_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/310160/Full_0622_Democracies_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
Take 5: Democracies and How They Thrive
A look at this form of government at a time when democracy is under stress around the world.
Georgy Egorov, Ameet Morjaria, Sandeep Baliga, Nancy Qian and and coauthors
June 8, 2022
![Voting machine in a spider web](/imager/clientcontent/326956/Full_1022_Conspiracy_election_24b460fa1ebea811277db04848c0c9ae.jpg 300w, /imager/clientcontent/326956/Full_1022_Conspiracy_election_827c6770ff3212869f8cd62919d4ad9e.jpg 150w, /imager/clientcontent/326956/Full_1022_Conspiracy_election_d790d93e6f5615a6551c6dd7531f3901.jpg 25w)
Politics & Elections
Why Are So Many Politicians Embracing Conspiracy Theories?
Conspiratorial thinking has always been attractive in times of uncertainty—but it’s become more mainstream. An expert explains why, and whether anything can be done.
Cynthia S. Wang
October 28, 2022