Can Dignity Prevail in America’s Polarized Landscape?
Summary: In this hyper-partisan election season, airwaves fill with content that distorts the images we have of those with different views than us. Yet, this content does not necessarily represent what Americans desire: a better discourse. Through our work with UNITE and their Dignity Index, we hope to encourage a cultural shift towards noticing and elevating dignity in political discourse.
Perception Gaps in A Time of Tribal Politics
In a moment where 84% of Americans say this is the most divided our country has been in their lifetime, how we treat the other side and the tone of political conversations feels paramount.1 Whether it’s The Daily Show’s video segments that embarrass and belittle Trump rally goers or Turning Point’s compilations of the “Top 5 CRAZIEST Liberals Charlie Kirk OWNED”, viral videos of “destroying” or “roasting” the other side to score political points reach millions. Meanwhile, healthy disagreements feel lost in the media shuffle – altogether fostering a sense of pessimism in building a more united America. The content that seems to rise to the top is when we demean the other side.
Yet a strong majority, 89% of Americans, agree people with different values and beliefs should be treated with dignity and respect.2 And while a slim number do think hostility is justified in conversations with those in the other party (12% of Democrats and 12% of Republicans), members of both parties over-estimate what percent of the opposing party supports hostility.
Democrats and Republicans alike falsely think about four times as many in the other party would support treating the other side with hostility than they actually do (Democrats estimate 47%; Republicans estimate 44%).
This is not a small misestimation, but a fundamental misunderstanding of those with differing views. If Republicans believe half of Democrats endorse using hostility against their side (and vice versa), they may be reluctant to engage in conversation—or may even approach dialogue with hostility themselves.
Information Consumption and Perception Gaps
We know social media is not representative of the views of most Americans, but social media distortions are at a scale not yet fully recognized. Researchers at New York University in a recent study note that “The people who post frequently on social media are often the most ideologically extreme...about 90% of the population's political opinions are being represented by less than 3% of tweets online...This renders moderate opinions effectively invisible on social media, leaving the most extreme perspectives most visible for users”.
Our own Hidden Tribes segmentation underscores this. The most divisive ideological factions, Progressive Activists and Devoted Conservatives, are also the most active in posting political content: on average, 63% in these groups say they share political content on social media, compared to just 24% among the Exhausted Majority. This unbalanced social media landscape leaves the “Exhausted Majority” — Americans who are weary of polarization and desire compromise—less visible.
When vocal minorities are disproportionately represented in our public discourse, Americans form skewed perceptions of what it means to be a Republican or a Democrat. These perceptions relate to our feelings of animosity towards one another –Americans think that about 3 in 4 of voters in the other party are “brainwashed”, “hateful”, and “arrogant”. Looking to the media and online to build our perceptions of the “other side” is flawed, but unfortunately Americans often lack interactions which might reveal a more respectful, compassionate side to the other perspective.
Correcting the Dignity Perception Gap and Creating a Culture of Dignity
To counter the negative perception gaps, we need to understand what’s driving them. Since late 2023, we’ve partnered with UNITE, an organization founded to ease our political divisions. UNITE’s work is driven by research that shows it’s not necessarily our disagreements that cause our divisions; it’s treating each other with contempt when we disagree. And when contempt tears us apart, treating each other with dignity can bring us back together.
As UNITE describes it, contempt is easy to see in the other side, but very hard to see in ourselves. We think our contempt is a mark of our virtue. When we treat the other side with contempt, we think the other side deserves it, and that making them look weak or stupid will make us look strong or smart. But when we see through our own disguise, we see that our contempt may have different content than the other side’s, but the same structure – and it makes things worse. Contempt makes enemies for our cause, makes the other side more extreme, and makes it impossible to solve problems.
Dignity and contempt, UNITE says, is the most overlooked dimension of our political speech and the most powerful element in determining whether our speech helps us ease divisions and solve problems or increase divisions and cause problems.
But we can’t change it if we don’t see it.
To put a spotlight on dignity and contempt, UNITE created the “Dignity Index”: an 8-point scale that measures how we talk to each other when we disagree. They also established the National Citizens Panel (NCP)—a diverse group of about 80 Americans across the political spectrum tasked with scoring political content according to the Dignity Index. This panel assesses the dignity or contempt in statements from politicians, media personalities, and social media influencers on a weekly basis–exploring if these statements express dignity or contempt.
After nearly eight months of scoring, one of the most striking findings is how tightly aligned the entire panel is on assessments of dignity or contempt. In this climate, one might have expected that people would give higher grades to views they agreed with, but that hasn’t been the case. The panel routinely has 90 percent-plus agreement on whether a passage expresses dignity or contempt – which shows that people can overcome their political bias to recognize contempt when it’s coming from their own side and dignity when it’s coming from the other side.
Why Paying More Attention to the Tone Matters
Our research with UNITE has found that when panelists notice dignity and contempt in political speech more, they also start to notice it in their own lives. In our baseline survey with the scoring panel, we found that 7% initially agreed that “When I talk about people with different values and beliefs that I disagree with, I sometimes treat them with hostility or contempt.” One month into scoring passages according to the Dignity Index, this rose to 24% — and remains roughly the same five months later (20%).
Participants haven’t become more hostile; rather, becoming aware of contempt writ large increases participants’ self-awareness of their contempt. This is what Unite calls the “mirror effect.” When Americans notice the tone of political speech, they suddenly see it in themselves and in the way they speak to others—both in political conversations and in general. This increased awareness and potential to spark self-reflection through the Dignity Index could lead to a more respectful political culture in America. As one participant noted:
"About a month ago I was talking about my disgust for a certain presidential candidate and literally stopped mid-conversation. I was being no better than the people I judge on a weekly basis.”
—Mindy, 40-year-old white woman, Politically Disengaged
"Now, I notice it all the time. When watching news, I call it out all the time to my family.”
— Bill, 57-year-old white man, Passive Liberal
Building a Culture of Dignity
If we realized that most Americans with differing political views genuinely want to treat others with dignity, we might feel less stressed about having a different opinion and more inclined to disagree respectfully. The Dignity Index was designed to help us better understand the tone of political discussions, and being mindful of this while consuming online content can help us identify when dialogue has devolved into toxic disagreement. While the political landscape may seem to reward toxicity and contempt, this doesn’t reflect the views of most Americans, and reminding ourselves of that can offer reassurance and optimism in this hyper-partisan election season.
In a sea of content that often vilifies those on the other side, there are glimmers of hope. Some groups like Starts with Us, Bridge USA and StoryCorps are creating content on social media that elevates healthy disagreement and better reflects the temperament of the typical Democrat and Republican that is often overlooked in favor of more sensational content. And the Dignity Index provides a new tool to help us better notice the tone in our national political discourse.
To learn more about the Dignity Index and the National Citizens Panel research, visit dignity.us.
Reminder to Vote
With an election coming up this Tuesday, we wanted to remind all eligible American voters to cast their ballots. Voting is a core function of our democracy and a key part of reducing polarization. Find out more about registration and where you can vote in your state here.
We can’t do this without you!
Our mission is to understand the forces driving us apart, to find common ground and help to bring people together to tackle our shared challenges. Consider supporting our work by making a donation.
📩 Know someone who may enjoy our newsletter? Have them sign up here.
📝 If you want to read our past newsletters, go to our homepage.
📊 Read all of our reports at www.moreincommonus.com
More in Common Survey of n=2,000 Americans, October 8-15, 2024. Margin of error: +/- 2.4%
More in Common Survey of n=204 Americans, February 9-17, 2024. Margin of error: +/- 6.9%