Thanks to @psypost.bsky.social for the in-depth coverage of @cvargiu.bsky.social and my recent POQ piece about #Mangione and support for #PoliticalViolence Our results are concerning, as liberals tend attitudinally to be less aggressive paper: tinyurl.com/yc3998e7 www.psypost.org/the-folk-her...

The "folk hero" narrative surrounding Luigi Mangione increased Democrats' support for violence against Republicans, study finds

The viral "folk hero" narrative surrounding the arrest of Luigi Mangione didn't just target corporate America. New research shows the event increased Democrats' willingness to endorse hypothetical act...

psypost.org

It's been a long and winding road, and I'm so happy to see this piece finally out - in spite of a *fundamental disagreement* that nearly ended an otherwise great collaboration with the awesome @alessandronai.bsky.social and Diego Garzia!

Alessandro Nai@alessandronai.bsky.social · 2mo ago

New piece out at @jepopy.bsky.social with the wonderful @cvargiu.bsky.social & Diego Garzia We use an experiment to test whether musical preferences and political attitudes influence each other. We find effects in both ways! Paper ungated: tinyurl.com/rpau9eyb Open data: osf.io/7vqgn

@andreavik.bsky.social is living proof that hard work pays off! So proud of her for this great achievement 🔥🔥 Go check her research out!!

Andrea Vik@andreavik.bsky.social · 3mo ago

🦋 I've got butterflies in my whole body today: our paper is out in @pnas.org! I'd say thats on theme.. Together with @alexgalvezpol.bsky.social, Sohee Park, and @mtsakiris.bsky.social we mapped how people feel political emotions in their bodies. Turns out politics doesn’t just play on our minds…

New publication! Unelected representation may influence how satisfied people are with democracy, opening up important discussions on the role activists play in shaping the legitimacy of liberal representative democracies. You can find out more below 👇

European Journal of Political Research@ejprjournal.bsky.social · 4mo ago

🆕 Unelected and untrusted? 🦹‍♂️ These authors 🧵 use a preregistered vignette experiment in Sweden, Germany, Italy, and Romania to assess whether citizens satisfaction with democracy is impacted by unelected representatives voicing political demands on behalf of constituencies buff.ly/YHgLyKN

I’d especially like to encourage women to apply. We’re a fantastic department with excellent scholars, in beautiful Vienna. Data shows that women are less likely to apply for positions than equally qualified men (Muriel Niederle & Lise Vesterlund 2011), so if you’re considering it, please go for it!

Reto Bürgisser@retobuergisser.bsky.social · 4mo ago

🚨 Job Alert 🚨 We have an opening for a 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗱𝗼𝗰 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 @stawi-univie.bsky.social starting Aug/Sep 2026! Focus: political representation, party competition, political institutions, political economy, political behavior, or related fields 📅Apply by 29 April 2026 jobs.univie.ac.at/job/Universi...

🚨 New piece forthcoming @poqjournal.bsky.social w/ @alessandronai.bsky.social Does violence beget more violence? We answer this question using the #Mangione case (assassination + arrest) as a natural experiment. Results ⬇️ Accepted manuscript: tinyurl.com/4mwh6rt6 Data & code: osf.io/y5mn3

Here's a link to the #OpenAccess article by @valentimvicente.bsky.social, @eliasdinas.bsky.social & @dziblatt.bsky.social - cup.org/4pIYRvH

⏰ Last day to send your abstract (max 500 words) to our @ecpr.bsky.social Joint Session workshop on 𝖍𝖔𝖘𝖙𝖎𝖑𝖊 𝖕𝖔𝖑𝖎𝖙𝖎𝖈𝖘 (U. Innsbruck, 7-10 April)! Submit here by midnight: tinyurl.com/yjcaa3ay

Chiara Vargiu@cvargiu.bsky.social · 8mo ago

⏱️ One more week to apply to our #ecprjs26 workshop on hostile communication styles! Come join us in Innsbruck to discuss the shady business of hostile politics 😶‍🌫️ Send your abstract by 10 Dec (link below). @ecpr.bsky.social @ecpr-polcom.bsky.social

🤖 AI chatbots can persuade voters 🗳️ @cvargiu.bsky.social and I were recently asked to review a piece for @nature.com, now out, and wrote a short digest about it TLDR: chatting with a LLM can change your mind, even if facts provided are not always accurate check it out 👇 #chatbots #persuasion

AI chatbots can persuade voters to change their minds

Conversations with AI can sway people’s political views. Concerningly, a chatbot’s facts are not always accurate, especially when it supports right-wing positions.

nature.com

⏱️ One more week to apply to our #ecprjs26 workshop on hostile communication styles! Come join us in Innsbruck to discuss the shady business of hostile politics 😶‍🌫️ Send your abstract by 10 Dec (link below). @ecpr.bsky.social @ecpr-polcom.bsky.social

a bald man with a ring on his finger is pointing at the camera

ALT: a bald man with a ring on his finger is pointing at the camera

media.tenor.com

Chiara Vargiu@cvargiu.bsky.social · 9mo ago

🎬 Excited to co-direct a #ecprjs26 Workshop w/ J. Dedeigne on hostile communication styles 🤬 Working on uncivil 🙄, intolerant 🙅🏻‍♀️, or violent 🤜 political rhetoric and its effects across countries, contexts, or media? Join us! 📅 Submit by 10 Dec: tinyurl.com/yjcaa3ay

🎬 Excited to co-direct a #ecprjs26 Workshop w/ J. Dedeigne on hostile communication styles 🤬 Working on uncivil 🙄, intolerant 🙅🏻‍♀️, or violent 🤜 political rhetoric and its effects across countries, contexts, or media? Join us! 📅 Submit by 10 Dec: tinyurl.com/yjcaa3ay

The Rise of Hostile Communication Styles and their Consequences for the Functioning of Modern Democracies

European Consortium for Political Research

ecpr.eu

We are finally out!! Thanks to my fantastic co-authors, the anonymous reviewers, and @thejop.bsky.social editorial team. Publishing my first registered report has been an incredibly instructive and rewarding experience 🤓 Much has been said about political incivility, but does it actually exist? 🤷‍♀️

Alessandro Nai@alessandronai.bsky.social · 9mo ago

🚨 New piece out at @thejop.bsky.social w awesome @cvargiu.bsky.social & D Garzia If incivility means breaking norms, & norms are person- and context-dependent, *does incivility even exist*? In the stage-2 registered report we investigate what drives perceptions of incivility tinyurl.com/4h5u4y8y

Radical right accommodation really does not work. New paper out with this exceptionally talented team @katharinalawall.bsky.social @robjohns75.bsky.social @drjennings.bsky.social @sarahobolt.bsky.social @zachdickson.bsky.social @danjdevine.bsky.social & @jack-bailey.co.uk doi.org/10.31235/osf...

🚨Pre-print alert🚨 Research shows citizens in many Western democracies are increasingly affectively polarized––they feel warm toward their own party but quite cold toward opposing parties. But how does it feel to “feel warmly”? @katharinalawall.bsky.social, @mtsakiris.bsky.social & I asked. 🧵1/8

⚡️⚡️⚡️ Interested in… …negativity, incivility, intolerance? …comparative and experimental data on the perception and effects of attack politics? … personality, contextual influences? Get all this with a discount! 📚📚📚🤩🤩🤩

Alessandro Nai@alessandronai.bsky.social · last yr.

Our new book THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ATTACK POLITICS is out next month! 🔥📚 We offer a new look at negativity effects, via perceptions & evaluations🤔😱👿🤣 You can pre-order it with a nice 20% discount on the cover price (for paperbacks this makes it £32 or so) Check out discount code & link in the flyer 👇

📕 *The Psychology of Attack Politics* is coming out next month. With @alessandronai.bsky.social and @lukotto.bsky.social we discuss how negativity isn't always what you think 🤔 and why some of us may even enjoy it 😈 Pre-order now with 20% off (paperback ~£32). Discount code + link in the flyer 👇

Alessandro Nai@alessandronai.bsky.social · last yr.

Our new book THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ATTACK POLITICS is out next month! 🔥📚 We offer a new look at negativity effects, via perceptions & evaluations🤔😱👿🤣 You can pre-order it with a nice 20% discount on the cover price (for paperbacks this makes it £32 or so) Check out discount code & link in the flyer 👇

Looking forward to present tomorrow our paper with @cvargiu.bsky.social about shifts in support for #PoliticalViolence driven by the #Mangione attack Come say hi if you are in Ghent or thereabouts! ➡️ preprint: osf.io/preprints/os...

GASPAR UGent@gasparugent.bsky.social · last yr.

➡️Save the date!⬅️ Interested in political violence, party dynamics and democratic norms? 👀 On 11 June, research group Gaspar has the pleasure to welcome prof. dr. @alessandronai.bsky.social for our Gaspar lecture series! All are welcome! Registration link 👇

New piece at @cogitatiopag.bsky.social w L Aaldering @kgattermann.bsky.social @fredericofs.bsky.social D Garzia The capper of our “dark leaders” trilogy, we show that negative traits matter the most Come for the cool theory, stay for the #GameofThrones experiment treatments ➡️ tinyurl.com/mvn7np2e

Pundits are - in vain - looking to economics and politics when trying to explain Trump's behavior. But, in reality, the central place to look if we want to understand Trump and his policies is this: The psychology of dominance. 🧵(1/5)

🚨 New piece at @polbehavior.bsky.social w @chiaravalli.bsky.social @timgravelle.bsky.social @mikemikemed.bsky.social Céline Murri & Beatrice Eugster TLDR: In 🇨🇭 visible mosques increases support for the #FarRight in elections and in referenda (~ +3-5%) Paper: tinyurl.com/5xk6ydv9 Data: osf.io/27pkj

Prompted by news of prosecutors seeking death penalty for Luigi #Mangione, we share findings from a natural experiment based on his case. We find that Mangione's arrest led to a small rise in support for #PoliticalViolence among Dems. 📝 Preprint: osf.io/preprints/os... 📊 Data & code: osf.io/y5mn3/

Alessandro Nai@alessandronai.bsky.social · last yr.

New preprint out with @cvargiu.bsky.social We use the Luigi #Mangione case (assassination + arrest) as natural experiment and show that it led to a (slight) uptick in support for #PoliticalViolence among Dems Feedback very welcome! ➡️ Preprint: osf.io/preprints/os... ➡️ Data and code: osf.io/y5mn3

So cool to see this taking shape 🥹 Thanks to @alessandronai.bsky.social & @lukotto.bsky.social for bringing me on board, it’s been great working on this together!

Alessandro Nai@alessandronai.bsky.social · last yr.

📚📚📚 New book out this July with @lukotto.bsky.social & @cvargiu.bsky.social We present a novel approach to study #NegativeCampaigning & #Incivility 🥊 ⚔️ - focusing on public perceptions and evaluations 😱😆🤢😡 Bonus: low price (~£35) & the cover is 🤘 Pre-orders from July 5: tinyurl.com/7raa9fpf

🚨 New paper out in @electoralstudies.bsky.social w Patrick van Erkel & @lindabos.bsky.social What drives changes in radical partisanship over time? TLDR: #NeedforChaos and #ExpressivePartisanship drive radicalisation & slow down de-radicalisation Paper tinyurl.com/mr46r35u Data 🇳🇱 osf.io/ma6u7

Why can’t Americans agree on the concept of equality? And how did Trump’s election victory influence this? Chiara Vargiu examines the starkly different ways Republicans and Democrats view social equality and how these differences put American democracy at risk.

Why Americans can't agree on social equality - The Amsterdam Centre for Conflict Studies

The gap between Democrats and Republicans on social equality deepens. Diversity vs. tradition fuels polarisation, while extreme views and us-vs-them thinking threaten American democracy.

conflictstudies.uva.nl

First an intro by PIs Abbey Steele and Alessandro Nai. Followed by: - Conversation with Enilda Jiménez on resisting political violence in Colombia. - Panel on aggressive rhetoric and its consequences. - Keynote by Leonie Huddy (Stony Brook) on news sharing as expressive partisanship.