Tolerance of political intolerance: The impact of context and partisanship on public approval of politicians’ uncivil behavior

Abstract

Politicians’ uncivil behaviors violate social and moral norms yet seem to be on the rise. We investigated under which circumstances politicians’ uncivil behavior towards their peers and opponents is tolerated by their supporters. We hypothesized that public support would depend on the context in which incivility is used (i.e., if it is targeted at political opponents vs. peers) and on the individuals’ moral beliefs. In two studies, we asked Democrats and Republicans to evaluate a politician who belonged to their preferred party and engaged in uncivil communication with either a member of the same or the opposing party. As expected, uncivil communication was condoned more when it was directed at the opponents. In the context of intergroup conflict, binding foundations predicted more approval among Republicans, and surprisingly more disapproval among Democrats. However, differences in (dis)approval between parties were not significant across both studies. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.