Political and Social Sorting in the United States, 2018-2022

• In Event: Social Networks and Political Sorting

Abstract

Are Democratic voters and Republican voters growing more socially distant from one another? They certainly express greater animosity toward each other, as measured by feeling thermometers or expressed preferences for interactions (Iyengar, Sood, and Lelkes 2012). Yet we have little evidence about changes in the extent of social interaction with opposing partisans over time. Though preferences for cross-party interaction have declined, expressed preferences in surveys often do not align with real-world behavior. For instance, Nall and Mummolo (2016) show that partisans express a preference to avoid living near members of the opposing party. Yet the authors argue these preferences play little role in observed moving patterns because the search for homes is typically constrained by more important considerations such as home prices and transportation needs.

To understand the extent of partisan social sorting that has occurred, we rely on two sets of survey batteries that we have fielded to large national samples in 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2022. The first battery measures the partisan composition of individuals' core networks---the handful of people an individual tends to discuss important matters (Marsden 1987). The second battery measures the partisan composition of individuals larger, less intimate acquaintance networks. In addition to cross-party interactions, the battery also measures social interaction with various political and demographic groups such as gun owners, LGBT people, and police officers. With these data we offer insight into the interweaving of the social and political lives of US citizens. By documenting the extent of change in these patterns, we provide evidence for evaluating one mechanism, cross-cutting exposure, that is broadly believed to shape electoral outcomes, partisan animosity, and democratic stability (for a review, see Hartman et. al. 2022).

Authors

• Matthew Pietryka, Florida State University

• Anand Edward Sokhey, University of Colorado, Boulder