Replication Data for: Close Relationships in Close Elections

Close elections are rare, but most Americans have experienced a close election at least once in their lifetime. How does intense politicization in close elections affect our close relationships? Using four national egocentric network surveys during the 1992, 2000, 2008, and 2016 election cycles, I find that close elections are associated with a modest decrease in network isolation in Americans’ political discussion networks. While Americans are more politically engaged in close elections, they also are less likely to be exposed to political dissent and more likely to deactivate their kinship ties to discuss politics. I further investigate a potential mechanism, the extent of political advertising, and show that cross-cutting exposure is more likely to disappear in states with more political ads air. To examine the behavioral consequence of close elections within American families, I revisit large-scale cell phone location data during the Thanksgiving holiday in 2016. I find that Americans are less likely to travel following close elections, and that families comprised of members with strong, opposing political views are more likely to shorten their Thanksgiving dinner. These results illuminate a process in which politicization may “close off” strong-tied relationships in the aftermath of close elections.

势均力敌的选举（close elections）虽为数不多，但多数美国人一生中至少曾亲历过一次。那么，势均力敌的选举中愈演愈烈的政治化倾向，会对我们的亲密社会关系产生何种影响？本研究借助1992、2000、2008及2016年大选周期内的四项全国性自我中心网络调查（egocentric network surveys），发现势均力敌的选举与美国人政治讨论网络中的网络孤立程度小幅下降存在关联。尽管美国人在势均力敌的选举中政治参与度更高，但他们接触政治异见的概率有所降低，且更倾向于切断用于政治讨论的亲属关系纽带。本研究进一步探究了潜在作用机制——政治广告投放规模，结果显示，在政治广告播出量更高的州，民众的跨立场政治接触（cross-cutting exposure）更易消失。为探究势均力敌的选举对美国家庭的行为影响，本研究重新分析了2016年感恩节假期期间的大规模手机定位数据。结果发现，经历势均力敌的选举后，美国人出行的概率有所降低；而由持有截然对立政治立场的成员组成的家庭，更有可能缩短感恩节家宴时长。上述研究结果揭示了这样一种过程：在势均力敌的选举结束后，政治化倾向可能会“封闭”强纽带社会关系。