Positive and Negative Partisanship

Partisanship is omnipresent in American politics. Even in European multiparty systems and emerging democracies in Africa, attachments to political parties form easily, enduringly, and almost instantly. Given its potent role in impacting citizens’ political attitudes and behavior, it is no surprise that political scientists have dedicated a tremendous amount of effort and time to examining the origins, conceptualization, and measurement of partisanship. Yet important questions remain: Is partisanship purely psychological, or is it grounded in strong political attitudes and ideologies? Is partisanship influenced by political preferences, or does partisanship influence political preferences? And how does partisanship influence attitudes toward the out-party? This bibliography will introduce readings that address these questions. At the same time, this entry will go beyond the canonical work on positive partisan attachments and introduce the work on negative partisanship—the notion that citizens increasingly feel lukewarm about their own party and primarily define themselves by which political party they do not belong to. The reader can utilize this overview to identify new research avenues.