TY - JOUR
T1 - Ambivalence Reduction and Polarization in the Campaign Information Environment
T2 - The Interaction Between Individual- and Contextual-Level Influences
AU - Kim, Young Mie
AU - Wang, Ming
AU - Gotlieb, Melissa R.
AU - Gabay, Itay
AU - Edgerly, Stephanie
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors wish to thank the University of Wisconsin Advertising Project for access to part of the campaign placement and content data of the 2008 Election. The authors also wish to thank Dhavan Sha who graciously allowed the authors to access the Common Content portion of the Cooperative Campaign Analysis Project (CCCP) of the 2008 Election. Collection of the data presented here, the Cooperative Campaign Analysis Project (CCAP), brings together over 60 social scientists across 25 institutions. After the baseline wave of this cooperative study, a portion of all subsequent panel interviews were dedicated to unique data collection designed by participating teams. The Wisconsin-Michigan team was lead by Barry Burden, Erika Franklin Fowler, Ken Goldstein, Hernando Rojas, and Dhavan Shah, with Shah serving as the principal investigator. These researchers are grateful for the support received from the following sources: the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Scholars in Health Policy Research Program at the University of Michigan, and the Hamel Faculty Fellowship, the Walter J. & Clara Charlotte Damm Fund of the Journal Foundation, the Graduate School, and the Department of Political Science at the University of Wisconsin. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the supporting sources or participating faculty.
PY - 2013/6
Y1 - 2013/6
N2 - This study examines how the campaign information environment influences individuals' ambivalence reduction and polarization. Based on the 2008 presidential television campaign advertising data and individuals' electoral behavior data in 208 designated market areas nationwide, this study utilizes multilevel modeling to better understand the interactions between the effects of individual-level predispositions and that of the contextual-level campaign information environment. The findings of the study indicate that the campaign information environment does matter in ambivalence reduction and polarization. Individuals living in a media market where the volume of campaign advertising is relatively high are less ambivalent and more polarized in candidate evaluations. The patterns appear to be amplified among partisans, suggesting the campaign information environment functions as a "motivator." The partisan bias of the ads in a media market, however, exerts only limited influence. The implications for the functioning of democracy are discussed.
AB - This study examines how the campaign information environment influences individuals' ambivalence reduction and polarization. Based on the 2008 presidential television campaign advertising data and individuals' electoral behavior data in 208 designated market areas nationwide, this study utilizes multilevel modeling to better understand the interactions between the effects of individual-level predispositions and that of the contextual-level campaign information environment. The findings of the study indicate that the campaign information environment does matter in ambivalence reduction and polarization. Individuals living in a media market where the volume of campaign advertising is relatively high are less ambivalent and more polarized in candidate evaluations. The patterns appear to be amplified among partisans, suggesting the campaign information environment functions as a "motivator." The partisan bias of the ads in a media market, however, exerts only limited influence. The implications for the functioning of democracy are discussed.
KW - ambivalence
KW - ambivalence reduction
KW - campaign information environment
KW - multilevel modeling
KW - polarization
KW - political advertising
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84876954516&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/0093650211431884
DO - 10.1177/0093650211431884
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84876954516
SN - 0093-6502
VL - 40
SP - 388
EP - 416
JO - Communication Research
JF - Communication Research
IS - 3
ER -