The present study proposes a model, termed the hybrid model, to explain fiscal-policy responses to financial crises. Although it is applied throughout the present study to the Eurozone, the model’s geographic and substantive scope apply more broadly. Combining and building upon past approaches, the hybrid model proposes three independent variables: partisanship, political capacity, and external actors. The model builds on the literature’s three dominant approaches: partisan, domestic approaches; approaches that emphasize convergence; and approaches that emphasize divergence, represented here primarily by the Varieties of Capitalism (VoC) literature. The hybrid model integrates the domestic emphasis of the partisan approach with the international emphases of the convergence and, to some extent, VoC approaches. The hybrid model builds on the domestic politics of the partisan approach by integrating coalition logic and the tension between coalition partners into the partisan approach’s political landscape. The model also advances the convergence and VoC approaches by providing an explanation for variation in the pressure of financial markets, both over time and across countries, which mediates the influence of external actors in the domestic affairs of sample countries. In addition, with respect to the dependent variable, the present study develops a disaggregated measure that accounts for the diverse distributional implications of fiscal policies’ various dimensions. With respect to empirics, the present study employs a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. Broadly, the large-N results provide support for the hybrid model, particularly as it pertains to partisanship. Event analyses and case studies support the role of external actors; the empirics show the degree to which financial-market pressure mediates the influence of external actors. Combined, the quantitative and qualitative approaches indicate problems with consonance, the particular dimension of political capacity considered in the present study. Both quantitative and qualitative results reveal that consonance, i.e., between-party tensions in coalition governments, provides an incomplete characterization of the factors influencing the political capacity of single-party and coalition governments. The case studies suggest that within-party tensions and party-system strength, as additional measures of political capacity, play key roles in shaping fiscal-policy responses. The empirics also confirm the importance of disaggregating fiscal policy, the dependent variable, beyond the broad measures of fiscal deficit, expenditure, and revenue adopted in the present literature.

Introduction: Domestic research studies focused on the interrelationships between political ideology characteristics inherent in policy decisions and the contributions these political determinants exert over health indicators and outcomes are limited. Given the paucity of research that focuses on political and policy support of health at the county-level, this study sets out to utilize the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute’s (UWPHI) annual County Health Rankings data and examine them within the context of county-based majority political partisanship and economic measures. Methods: This exploratory ecological study examined differences between independent variables: partisan voting behavior (trichotomized as conservative, moderate, and liberal) and median per capita household income in U.S. dollars (by quartile) on dependent variables related to mortality (years of productive life lost) and morbidity (number of poor mental and physical health days) at the county-level to compare differences in political and ideological underpinnings that may act as influencers on health outcomes. Multiple data sources were combined and matched to all 3,140 counties located in the U.S. Two-way between-subjects ANOVA statistical tests were conducted to determine if there is an effect of partisan voter index category on the three aforementioned dependent variables related to health outcomes, and median per capita income by quartile. Results: There was a statistically significant main interaction between median per capita household income by quartile and partisan voter index category on years of productive life lost, F(6,2789) = 19.3, p < .000, partial η2 = .040. While there were also statistically significant interactions between the independent and dependent variables of poor mental and physical health days, results of those analyses should be interpreted with caution. Pertaining to years of productive life lost, post hoc analyses of significant interactions revealed significant differences at the lower income quartile, but not in the expected direction. The conservative category had statistically significant lower years of productive life lost in comparison to the liberal category (M = -8.21, SE = 1.47, p = .000). Also, there were significant differences detected in the upper quartile suggesting that the liberal category has lower years of productive life lost in comparison to the conservative category (M = 7.06, SE = 1.06, p = .000). Conclusion: Results should be interpreted with caution and suggest more research and methodological refinements are needed, particularly related to categorizing county-level political dynamics.

I focus on three district-level demographic variables indicative of contemporary social cleavages, and construct measures of their influences on partisan representation in American state legislatures during the 1999-2000 years. Using these measures, I examine a series of questions concerning the relationship between social cleavages and state legislative outcomes. I find that district racial composition is the most important constituency-based factor influencing partisan representation and voting in legislatures, but that other constituency variables are also important under various circumstances. I also present OLS regression analyses demonstrating the independent effect of the overall representation of social cleavages on levels of legislative polarization. / text

Introduction: Domestic research studies focused on the interrelationships between political ideology characteristics inherent in policy decisions and the contributions these political determinants exert over health indicators and outcomes are limited. Given the paucity of research that focuses on political and policy support of health at the county-level, this study sets out to utilize the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute’s (UWPHI) annual County Health Rankings data and examine them within the context of county-based majority political partisanship and economic measures. Methods: This exploratory ecological study examined differences between independent variables: partisan voting behavior (trichotomized as conservative, moderate, and liberal) and median per capita household income in U.S. dollars (by quartile) on dependent variables related to mortality (years of productive life lost) and morbidity (number of poor mental and physical health days) at the county-level to compare differences in political and ideological underpinnings that may act as influencers on health outcomes. Multiple data sources were combined and matched to all 3,140 counties located in the U.S. Two-way between-subjects ANOVA statistical tests were conducted to determine if there is an effect of partisan voter index category on the three aforementioned dependent variables related to health outcomes, and median per capita income by quartile. Results: There was a statistically significant main interaction between median per capita household income by quartile and partisan voter index category on years of productive life lost, F(6,2789) = 19.3, p < .000, partial η2 = .040. While there were also statistically significant interactions between the independent and dependent variables of poor mental and physical health days, results of those analyses should be interpreted with caution. Pertaining to years of productive life lost, post hoc analyses of significant interactions revealed significant differences at the lower income quartile, but not in the expected direction. The conservative category had statistically significant lower years of productive life lost in comparison to the liberal category (M = -8.21, SE = 1.47, p = .000). Also, there were significant differences detected in the upper quartile suggesting that the liberal category has lower years of productive life lost in comparison to the conservative category (M = 7.06, SE = 1.06, p = .000). Conclusion: Results should be interpreted with caution and suggest more research and methodological refinements are needed, particularly related to categorizing county-level political dynamics.

An analysis of the social psychology and contributing influences behind American polarization in the early twenty-first century.

abstract: Political party identification has an immense influence on shaping individual attitudes and processes of reasoning to the point where otherwise knowledgeable people endorse political conspiracies that support one's political in-group and simultaneously disparage an out-group. Although recent research has explored this tendency among partisans, less is known about how Independents respond in comparison. Previous research fails to identify the Independent as a unique type of voter, but rather categorizes this group as ostensibly partisan, not a separate phenomenon to investigate. However, most Independents purport neutrality and, by recent polls, are becoming a substantial body worthy of concerted focus. Many questions arise about who Independents really are. For example, do all who identify as Independent behave in a similar manner? Are Independents ideologically different than what is represented by a partisan label? Is the Independent category a broad term for something entirely misunderstood? A thorough investigation into the greater dynamics of the political environment in the United States is an enormous undertaking, requiring a robust interdisciplinary approach beyond the focus and intent of this study. Therefore, this study begins the journey toward understanding these phenomena; do Independents, as a whole, uniformly respond to statements about political conspiracy theories? To explore these possibilities, explicit responses are bypassed to evaluate the implicit appeal of political conspiracy theories. An action dynamics (mouse-tracking) approach, a data rich method that records the response process, demonstrates Independents are not in fact a homogeneous group, but rather seem to fall into two groups: non-partisan leaning and partisan leaning. The analysis exposes that relative to the baseline and control stimuli: (1) Non-leaning Independents reveal an increased susceptibility to implicitly endorse bi-partisan directed conspiracy theories when compared to leaners. (2) Republican-leaners demonstrate a stronger susceptibility to endorse right-wing aligned conspiracy theories (against Barack Obama), similar to Republican partisans. (3) Democrat-leaners, unlike Democrat partisans, do not demonstrate any particular susceptibility to implicitly endorse either right/left-wing aligned conspiracy theories (against Barack Obama or George W. Bush). Drawing from major theories from social, political, and cognitive psychology will contribute to an understanding of these phenomena. Concluding remarks include study limitations and future directions. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2017

O papel dos partidos políticos na política externa brasileira é uma questão tradicionalmente polêmica, assim como é a polarização política nessa área. Dentro desse contexto, e diante da crescente presença de atores subnacionais com grande capacidade de atuação no contexto internacional, cabe avaliar se essas questões estendem-se também a outros níveis administrativos além do governo federal. Sendo assim, este trabalho visa primeiro a examinar a teoria acerca da polarização política no nível municipal. Mais especificamente, procura perceber se as diferenças ideológicas entre os partidos políticos no nível municipal influenciam a forma como é feita a inserção internacional das cidades. Num segundo momento, tendo São Paulo como objeto de análise, este trabalho avalia se há influência partidária nas estratégias de inserção internacional da cidade em duas diferentes gestões: Marta Suplicy, do PT (2001-2004), e José Serra, PSDB/Gilberto Kassab, DEM (2005-2008). Após a avaliação de documentos e entrevistas com funcionários da Secretaria de Relações Internacionais, conclui-se que o partido dos governantes influencia as estratégias paradiplomáticas da cidade, provocando descontinuidade das políticas municipais da área e modificando objetivos e eixos de atuação. / The role of political parties in the Brazilian external policy is a traditionally contentious issue, as well as the polarization of the field. Within this context, and considering the growing presence of subnational actors with great capacity for action in the international scenario, it is important to assess whether these questions can also be extended to other administrative levels besides the federal government. Thus, this research aims first at examining the theory about political polarization in city administrations. More specifically, it seeks to understand whether the ideological differences among political parties at the city level influence the way cities act internationally. Secondly, considering São Paulo as the object of analysis, this work assesses whether political parties influence the strategies of international performance of the city in two different administrations: Marta Suplicy, from PT (2001-2004), and José Serra, from PSDB/Gilberto Kassab, from DEM (2005-2008). After evaluating documents and interviewing employees of the Secretariat of International Relations of the city of São Paulo, we conclude that the governor\'s party does influence the paradiplomatic strategies of the city, thus creating discontinuity in the city policies of the field and altering objectives and axis of action.

How do voters navigate the intersection between democracy and capitalism? Citizens have the opportunity to directly decide upon policies that shape their state's economy through market regulatory ballot measures; however, the role of voters in this key intersection and policy making-mechanism has been largely overlooked. Models of reasoning and decision-making in the voting literature have primarily developed from rational choice theory. These models identify conditions under which self-interest and partisanship influence voter choice and policy attitude formation. To extend this literature to voter reasoning on market regulatory measures, I examined how variation in voter choice and reasoning corresponded with variation in social indicators of self-interest and partisanship, both of which are foundational individual-level processes for capitalism and democracy, respectively. In order to carry out this analysis I conducted semi-structured interviews with 120 respondents about how they voted on four market regulatory ballot measures that appeared on the Arizona state ballot from 2008-2012 related to narcotic decriminalization and medicalization, education funding, immigration and labor markets, and consumer protection. Drawing from contemporary models of voter reasoning, I selected self-interest and partisanship as independent variables for this analysis and then examined how variation in these variables corresponded with variation in voter choice. I subsequently used my qualitative data to investigate how voters used narratives of self-interest and partisan values to reason about these four market regulatory ballot measures. I supplemented my qualitative analysis by investigating voter use of beliefs from non-partisan economic philosophies in their reasoning on these measures. To my knowledge, voter reasoning related to market regulatory ballot measures has yet to be studied and therefore my analysis required holding key factors (such as gender, race, and ethnicity) constant in order to limit sources of variation in voter choice and reasoning.

<div><b>The Internet is a technology that has been one that has been transformed American society. </b><b>The role of the Internet had become apparent in the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 in light of shutdowns and quarantines by the government. </b><b>As a result, the technologies surrounding the Internet have created a space where there are inequalities in which the Internet is accessed. </b><b>As a result, these inequalities affect not only socioeconomic factors, but political behaviors as well. </b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div><b>This dissertation also seeks to explain the political behaviors that are enabled by Internet access quality.</b></div><div><b>I argue that a person's level of Internet access can affect their ideological and partisan identity, as well as political engagement, especially in behaviors such as political giving. I use data from the Cooperative Congressional Election Survey and the 2010 U.S. Decennial Census to test these theories. </b><b>By using a measure I develop called the Quality of Internet Access (QoIA), I find evidence that Internet access has affects on ideological and partisan identity. </b><b>I also find that QoIA affects political engagement positively, specifically in how donations are given to, and solicited by political campaigns. </b><b>I conclude that the QoIA measurement should be flexibly used and research in taking account for Internet access quality should continue as the inequalities of the digital divide still exist. </b></div>

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