From a “division of society” is almost daily somewhere in the speech. Time, threatens you, and other times it is already a reality. Often the signs of a split are, however, not very convincing. Mostly either economic inequality or political camp formation are reported. However, a schism presupposes a gap, differences can be seen, also if you select well-defined groups, women and men, for example, or dog and cat lovers. Socially relevant, such differences are, if you define contact opportunities and obstacles. To not comes a split in it when women talk with men and dog lovers, not cat lovers in the family to tolerate. Or if the political Belief radiates and the population in other areas of life in hostile groups sorted.
An international comparative study on political polarization in nine Western countries, the results of which were published in the journal Science, observed trends of a divisive “political sectarianism” in the United States but also in Canada, new Zealand and in Switzerland. The primary indicator of the antipathy against political opponents (the out-party hate) is. On a “feeling thermometer”, which measures the attitude to other groups on a scale of 0 to 100 degrees, has halved the sympathy for the other side in the United States in the last decades, more than. In addition, it has overtaken in the last few years, the hatred on the other the appreciation for one’s own group: it is Not the identification with the own group, but the rejection of another’s behavior determines the political identity and the choice.