Disengaging from Others: Determinants of Selective Avoidance in Polarized Argentina

Selective avoidance, defined as the tendency to evade information that challenges political beliefs, weakens deliberative norms in polarized societies. Most studies have focused on the United States and Europe, often attributing avoidance to algorithmic curation. This article examines Argentina, one of the most polarized countries in Latin America, to assess the broader validity of these explanations. Using survey data from ESPOP 2024, we analyze how ideological extremism, partisan identification, political sophistication, and voting intention shape avoidance online and offline. Logistic regression models show that strong partisan ties, extreme ideological views, and greater sophistication significantly increase the likelihood of avoidance. Cognitive Partisans, who combine high sophistication with strong partisan identity, are the most prone to filtering, suggesting that political knowledge enables strategic selectivity rather than openness. Comparative evidence from Argentina demonstrates that selective avoidance reflects identity-protective processes not limited to advanced democracies or digital environments.