POL 608 – Foundations, Political Psychology
Fall, 2011
Lindsey Clark Levitan
Office: SBS N737
Email: Lindsey.Levitan@stonybrook.edu
Class Time: Tuesday, 9:30-12:30
Class Location: SBS N705
Office Hours: Tuesdays, 4-5, Thursdays, 11-12,
& by appointment
Course Description: POL 608 provides a broad introduction to the field of political psychology,
including classic and contemporary perspectives. It serves as the foundation course for our
graduate political psychology program. We will survey most of the major areas of political
psychology, through we will favor more recent and more empirical work.
Assignments and Grading:
POL 608 is designed to provide a solid foundation for further study and research in political
psychology. As such, it must expose you broadly to the existing body of theory and research in
the field. You are expected to read assignments with care, and to contribute intelligently to class
discussions each week.
Paper grades are distributed in the following way and due on the following dates:
Participation: 15%
Response Statements: 10% (Combined)
Paper 1: 20% (due 9/27*)
Paper 2: 20% (due 11/8*)
Paper 3: 35% (due 12/16*)
Thought Questions: Each week you will hand in questions and comments, which will be
due through e-mail the day before class by 5pm. These questions should be deep conceptual
questions or critiques, although clarifying questions are also acceptable. You will hand in 5
thought questions or comments, with clarifying questions counting as half a question. Additional
comments and questions are welcome, since the will help identify areas of readings that require
additional attention. Ideal questions will be critical responses to the reading. Response may
critique studies, identify conceptual links or contradictions between readings, identify links
between the readings and readings in other classes, or otherwise identify questions raised by the
readings (see also paper topics, below). Note that there will be no response statement for the
first week.
Papers: There will be three written papers. The first two papers will be 6-8 pages in
length, on a topic of your choice related to the readings up to that point of the course. They may
take a variety of approaches:
(a) A discussion and attempted resolution of what you see as conflicting ideas and/or
findings in the given literature.
(b) A critical reaction (positive or negative) to some theoretical proposition or program of
research (but not simply a summary).
(c) A synthesis of perspectives that have been presented as competing or unrelated.
(d) A brief research proposal designed to test or extend a theoretical claim you have
encountered in the readings/lecture.
(e) A synthesis of perspectives linking some ideas from this course to other ideas you have
run across in other coursework.
(f) Some other idiosyncratic approach that you must clear with me in advance.
The final paper will be an empirical research proposal – based on any topic covered in the course
– and should be approximately 15 pages in length. It is recommended (but not required) that you
discuss all paper topics with me in advance.
Required Text:
Sears, David O., Leonie Huddy, and Robert Jervis, eds., 2003. Oxford Handbook of Political
Psychology. Oxford UK: Oxford University Press.
Additional readings available on Blackboard at blackboard.stonybrook.edu
Dates, Topics, and Readings
Section 1: Putting the Field in Perspective
Week 1, 8/30: Introduction to Political Psychology, and Overview
Handbook Chapter 1: The Psychologies Underlying Political Psychology
Krosnick, Jon A., and Kathleen M. McGraw. 2002. Psychological Political Science versus
Political Psychology True to it’s Name: A Plea for Balance. In Kristen Renwick Monroe,
ed., Political Psychology (79-94), London: Erlbaum.
Lavine, Howard. 2010. A Sketch of Political Psychology
Section 2: Personality
Week 2, 9/6: Overview, Psychobiography, Traits
Greenstein, Fred. 1969. Personality and Politics, Chapters 2-3 (p 33-93). Chicago: Markham.
Nisbett, Richard E. 1980. The trait construct in lay and professional psychology. In Leon
Festinger, ed., Retrospections on Social Psychology. NY: Oxford University Press.
Hatemi, P. K., Funk, C. L., Medland, S. E., Maes, H. M., Silberg, J. L., Martin, N. G., Eaves, L.
J. 2009. Genetic and Environmental Transmission of Political Attitudes over a Life Time.
Journal of Politics, 71(3), 1141-1156.
Winter, David G. 1987. Leader Appeal, Leader Performance, and the Motive Profiles of Leaders
and Followers: A Study of American Presidents and Elections. Journal of Personality and
Social Psychology, 52, 196-202.
Week 3, 9/13: Authoritarianism
Altemeyer, Bob. 1988. Enemies of Freedom: Understanding Right-Wing Authoritarianism
(Chapters 1 & 3, pp. 1-18 & 51-104). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Feldman, Stanley. 2003. Enforcing Social Conformity: A Theory of Authoritarianism. Political
Psychology, 24, 41-74.
Stenner, Karen. 2005. The Authoritarian Dynamic (Chapter 2, pp. 13-36). London: Cambridge
University Press.
Lavine, Howard, Milton Lodge, and Kate Freitas. 2005. Threat, Authoritarianism, and Selective
Exposure to Information. Political Psychology, 26, 219-244.
Section 3: Social Influence Processes
Week 4, 9/20: Socialization
Handbook Chapter 3: Childhood and Adult Political Development
Tedin, K.L. 1974. The Influence of Parents on the Political Attitudes of Adolescents. American
Political Science Review, 68, 1579-1592.
Niemi, Richard G., and M. Kent Jennings. 1991. Issues and Inheritance in the Formation of Party
Identification. American Journal of Political Science, 35, 970-988.
Sears, David O., and Nicholas A. Valentino. 1997. Politics Matters: Political Events as Catalysts
for Pre-Adult Socialization. American Political Science Review, 91, 45-65.
John T. Jost, Banaji, M. R., & Nosek, B. A. 2004. A Decade of System Justification Theory:
Accumulated Evidence of Conscious and Unconscious Bolstering of the Status Quo.
Political Psychology, 25 (6), 881-919.
Week 5, 9/27: Groups: Conformity, Obedience, and Groupthink
Handbook Chapter 15: Group Identity and Political Cohesion
Brown, Roger. 1986. Social Forces in Obedience and Rebellion. In Social Psychology (pp. 1-42).
New York: The Free Press.
Kelman, Herbert, C., and V. Lee Hamilton. 1989. Crimes of Obedience: Toward a Social
Psychology of Authority and Responsibility (Chapter 5, pp. 103-135). New Haven, CT: Yale
University Press.
Janis, Irving. 1982. Groupthink: Psychological Studies of Policy Decision and Fiascos (2nd
Edition; Chapters 8, 10; pp. 174-197, 242-259).
Milgram, S. 1963. Behavioral Study of Obedience. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology,
67, 371-378.
*Paper 1 due in class
Section 4: Belief Systems, Public Opinion, Persuasion
Week 6, 10/4: Ideology and Mass Belief Systems
Converse, Philip E. 1964. The Nature of Belief Systems in Mass Publics. In David E. Apter, ed.,
Ideology and Discontent (pp 206-261). New York: Free Press.
Conover, Pamela J., and Stanley Feldman. 1981. The Origins and Meaning of Liberal/
Conservative Self-Identifications. American Journal of Political Science, 25, 617-645.
Feldman, Stanley. 1988. Structure and Consistency in Public Opinion. The Role of Core Beliefs
and Values. American Journal of Political Science, 32, 416-440.
Hurwitz, Jon, and Mark Peffley. 1987. How are foreign policy attitudes structured? A
hierarchical model. American Political Science Review 81: 1099-1120.
Jost, John T., Jack Glaser, Arie W. Kruglanski, and Frank J. Sulloway. 2003. Political
Conservatism as Motivated Social Cognition. Psychological Bulletin, 129, 339-375.
Week 7, 10/11: Public Opinion and the Nature of Attitudes
Handbook Chapter 13: Information Processing and Public Opinion
Eagly, Alice, H., and Shelly Chaiken. 1993. The Psychology of Attitudes (Chapter 1, pp. 1-22).
New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Wilson, T. D., Lindsey, S., & Schooler, T. 2000. A Model of Dual Attitudes. Psychological
Review, 107, 101-126.
Lau, Richard. 1989. Construct Accessibility and Electoral Choice. Political Behavior, 11, 5-32.
Zaller, John, and Stanley Feldman. 1992. A Simple Theory of the Survey Response: Answering
Questions versus Revealing Preferences. American Journal of Political Science, 36, 579616.
Week 8, 10/18: Forming Impressions
Handbook Chapter 12: Political Impressions: Formation and Management
Holbrook, Allyson, Jon A. Krosnick, Penny S. Visser, Wendi L. Gardner, and John T. Cacioppo.
2001. Attitudes toward Presidential Candidates and Political Parties: Initial Optimism,
Inertial First Impressions, and a Focus on Flaws. American Journal of Political Science, 45,
930-950.
Lodge, Milton, Marco Steenbergen, and Shawn Brau. 1995. The Responsive Voter: Campaign
Information and the Dynamics of Candidate Evaluation. American Political Science Review,
89, 309-326.
McGraw, Kathleen M. 1991. Managing blame: An experimental test of the effects of political
accounts. American Political Science Review 85: 1133-57.
Feldman, S., & Conover, P. J. 1983. Candidates, issues and voters: The role of inference in
political perception. Journal of Politics, 45(4), 810-839.
Week 9, 10/25: Decision-Making
Handbook Chapter 2: Models of Decision-Making
Simon, Herbert. 1985. Human Nature in Politics: The Dialogue of Psychology and Political
Science. American Political Science Review, 79, 293-304.
Quattrone, George, and Amos Tversky, 1988. Contrasting Rational and Psychological Analyses
of Political Choice. American Political Science Review, 82, 719-36.
Taber, Charles S., and Milton Lodge. 2006. Motivated skepticism in the evaluation of political
beliefs. American Journal of Political Science 50: 755-69.
Week 10, 11/1: Primes, Biases & Heuristics
Lupia, Arthur, 1994. Shortcuts versus Encyclopedias: Information and Voting Behavior in
California Insurance Reform Elections. American Political Science Review, 88, 63-76.
Lau, Richard, and David Redlawsk. 2001. Advantages and Disadvantages of Cognitive
Heuristics in Political Decision Making. American Journal of Political Science, 45, 951-971.
Risen, J. L., & Critcher, C. R. 2011. Visceral Fit: While in a Visceral State, Associated States of
the World Seem More Likely. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 100(5), 777793.
Berger, J., Meredith, M., & Wheeler, C. 2008. Contextual priming: Where people vote affects
how they vote. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 105, 8846-8849.
Levitan, L. C., & Visser, P. S. 2008. The impact of the social context on resistance to persuasion:
Effortful versus effortless responses to counter-attitudinal information. Journal of
Experimental Social Psychology, 44(3), 640-649.
Week 11, 11/8: Affect and Emotion in Political Judgment
Handbook Chapter 6: The Psychology of Emotion and Politics
Glaser, Jack, and Peter Salovey. 1998. Affect in Electoral Politics. Personality and Social
Psychology Review, 2, 156-172.
Huddy, Leonie, Stanley Feldman, Charles Taber, and Gallya Lahav. 2005. Threat, Anxiety, and
Support for Anti-Terrorism Policies. American Journal of Political Science, 49, 593-608.
Lodge, Milton, and Charles S. Taber. 2005. The Automaticity of Affect for Political Leaders,
Groups, and Issues: An Experimental Test of the Hot Cognition Hypothesis. Political
Psychology, 26, 455-482.
Marcus, George, and Michael B. MacKuen. 1993. Anxiety, Enthusiasm, and the Vote: The
Emotional Underpinnings of Leaning and Involvement during Presidential Campaigns.
American Political Science Review, 87, 672-785.
*Paper 2 due in class
Week 12, 11/15: Mass Media and Attitude Change
Handbook Chapter 11: Communication and Politics in the Age of Information
Ansolaehere, Stephen, Shanto Iyengar, Adam Simon, and Nicholas Valentino. 1994. Does
Attack Advertising Demobilize the Electorate? American Political Science Review, 88, 829838.
Ball-Rokeach, S.J., Rokeach, M., & Grube, J.W. 1984. The Great American Values Test.
Psychology Today, 18, 34-41.
Iyengar, Shanto, Mark D. Peters, and Donald R. Kinder. 1982. Experimental Consequences of
the “Not-So-Minimal” Consequences of Television News Programs. American Political
Science Review, 76, 848-858.
Nelson, Thomas E., Rosalee A. Clawson, and Zoe M. Oxley. 1997. Media Framing of a Civil
Liberties Conflict and its Effect on Tolerance. American Political Science Review, 91, 567583.
Week 13, 11/22: Thanksgiving Break – Correction Day
Week 14, 11/29: Self-Interest and Altruism
Handbook Chapter 14: Values, Ideology, and the Structure of Political Attitudes
Sears, David O. and Carolyn Funk. 1991. The Role of Self-Interest in Social and Political
Attitudes. In Mark P. Zanna, ed., Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 24, pp.
1-91). New York: Academic Press.
Gaertner, Samuel L. & Dovidio, John F 1977. The subtlety of White racism, arousal, and helping
behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. Vol 35(10), 691-707.
Feldman, S., & Steenbergen, M. R. 2001. The humanitarian foundation of public support for
social welfare. American Journal of Political Science, 658-677.
Bergan, D. E. 2009. The Draft Lottery and Attitudes Towards the Vietnam War. Public Opinion
Quarterly, 73(2), 379.
Section 5: Intergroup Relations
Week 15, 12/6: Stereotyping and Prejudice
Handbook Chapter 16: Prejudice and Intergroup Hostility
Sidanius, Jim, Felicia Pratto, Colette van Laar, and Shana Levin. 2004. Social dominance theory:
Its agenda and method. Political Psychology 25: 845-80.
Sniderman, P. M., E. G. Carmines, G. C. Layman, and M. Carter. 1996. "Beyond Race: Social
Justice as a Race Neutral Ideal." American Journal of Political Science 40: 33-55.
Devine, Patricia G. 1989. Stereotypes and Prejudice: Their Automatic and Controlled
Components. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56, 5-18.
Feldman, Stanley, and Leonie Huddy. 2005. Racial Resentment and White Opposition to RaceConscious Programs: Principles or Prejudice? American Journal of Political Science, 49,
168-183.
**Friday 12/16: Paper 3 due in my office mailbox or e-mail (by 5:00)
Americans with Disabilities Act:
If you have a physical, psychological, medical or learning disability that may impact your course work,
please contact Disability Support Services,128 ECC (Educational Communications Center) Building,
room128, (631) 632-6748 or http://studentaffairs.stonybrook.edu/dss/. They will determine with you what
accommodations are necessary and appropriate. All information and documentation is confidential.
Students who require assistance during emergency evacuation are encouraged to discuss their needs with
their professors and Disability Support Services. For procedures and information go to the following
website: http://www.sunysb.edu/ehs/fire/disabilities.shtml
Academic Integrity:
Each student must pursue his or her academic goals honestly and be personally accountable for all
submitted work. Representing another person's work as your own is always wrong. Faculty are required to
report any suspected instances of academic dishonesty to the Academic Judiciary. Faculty in the Health
Sciences Center (School of Health Technology & Management, Nursing, Social Welfare, Dental
Medicine) and School of Medicine are required to follow their school-specific procedures. For more
comprehensive information on academic integrity, including categories of academic dishonesty, please
refer to the academic judiciary website at http://www.stonybrook.edu/uaa/academicjudiciary/
Critical Incident Management:
Stony Brook University expects students to respect the rights, privileges, and property of other people.
Faculty are required to report to the Office of Judicial Affairs any disruptive behavior that interrupts their
ability to teach, compromises the safety of the learning environment, or inhibits students' ability to learn.
Faculty in the HSC Schools and the School of Medicine are required to follow their school-specific
procedures.
Stony Brook University expects students to maintain standards of personal integrity that are in harmony
with the educational goals of the institution; to observe national, state, and local laws and University
regulations.