| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11401/76766 | |
| dc.description.sponsorship | This work is sponsored by the Stony Brook University Graduate School in compliance with the requirements for completion of degree. | en_US |
| dc.format | Monograph | |
| dc.format.medium | Electronic Resource | en_US |
| dc.language.iso | en_US | |
| dc.publisher | The Graduate School, Stony Brook University: Stony Brook, NY. | |
| dc.type | Dissertation | |
| dcterms.abstract | This dissertation argues that electoral supply, as measured by the effective number of parties across U.S. Congressional districts, shapes the way in which individuals conceptualize and think about politics at a fundamental, cognitive level. Via socialization processes and repeated exposure over time, individuals nested within dissimilar supply environments learn to interact with political stimuli in ways which systematically differ. In contexts with traditionally less electoral supply, or a fewer number of viable parties, individuals become accustom to characterizing partisan dynamics in dichotomous, black and white terms. Alternatively, in contexts with more electoral supply individuals learn to view partisan dynamics as more nuanced or multifaceted, given an increase in the number of electoral options within similar ideological space. To test this I employ several of Barsalou's (1985) measures of graded structure. In this dissertation, graded structure captures the ways in which individuals structure and organize party-related concepts within long-term memory. I then explore how individual differences in graded structure predict variation in political categorization, information seeking and information processing. Finally, I connect measures of graded structure to downstream effects on political attitudes and behaviors. Among the American electorate there exists considerable discrepancies in political interest, efficacy, partisan attachment, participation, and voter turnout. By explicating the relationship between electoral supply and political cognition at the individual level, my dissertation sheds light on the psychological mechanisms driving these outcomes. | |
| dcterms.available | 2017-09-20T16:51:09Z | |
| dcterms.contributor | Taber, Charles S. | en_US |
| dcterms.contributor | Lebo, Matthew | en_US |
| dcterms.contributor | Lavine, Howard | en_US |
| dcterms.contributor | Green, Jane. | en_US |
| dcterms.creator | Johnson, April | |
| dcterms.dateAccepted | 2017-09-20T16:51:09Z | |
| dcterms.dateSubmitted | 2017-09-20T16:51:09Z | |
| dcterms.description | Department of Political Science. | en_US |
| dcterms.extent | 193 pg. | en_US |
| dcterms.format | Application/PDF | en_US |
| dcterms.format | Monograph | |
| dcterms.identifier | http://hdl.handle.net/11401/76766 | |
| dcterms.issued | 2014-12-01 | |
| dcterms.language | en_US | |
| dcterms.provenance | Made available in DSpace on 2017-09-20T16:51:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1
Johnson_grad.sunysb_0771E_11947.pdf: 2128886 bytes, checksum: ff72bfcea3a319380d4e46d8378788c9 (MD5)
Previous issue date: 1 | en |
| dcterms.publisher | The Graduate School, Stony Brook University: Stony Brook, NY. | |
| dcterms.subject | Political Science | |
| dcterms.title | Contextual Influences on Political Cognition | |
| dcterms.type | Dissertation | |
