1. (De)activating Populism through Emotions
Allison Adams, Ethan Busby, David Doyle, Joshua Gubler, Kirk Hawkins, Fred Tan, Nina Wiesehomeier

2. Research Question
Other studies show that populism is associated with anger and, to a lesser degree fear. This suggests the potential for emotional reasoning. Will aroused emotions independently sharpen—or reduce—populism?

3. Pilot Design I MTurk sample, June 2017, N=155
Populism index I (Bruno et al., 9 questions, 7-pt scale)
Stance on immigration
Demographic filler, attention check
Emotion prime (none, anger, excitement, fear)
Larry narrative
Elaboration task
Emotions measure
Populism index II

4. Stance on Immigration Pilot I: 4-item scale
Pilot II: feeling thermometer

5. Immigration Larry
In 2015, the United States accepted approximately 2 million immigrants. The total number of immigrants living in the US now accounts for 13% of the population. 
These two factors combined have had a profound influence on Americans all over the country - to further illustrate this situation to you, we'd like to tell you about the experience of someone who has been affected by these economic and social changes. Larry has lived in the state of Washington all his life and just between 2010 and 2015, Washington saw about a 60% increase in the number of immigrants residing in the state.
Larry notes that politicians in his hometown rely heavily on the votes of the Hispanic community. Strategically, maintaining Hispanic support is key to staying in power. Consequently, local representatives instructed the police chief not to arrest or deport illegal immigrants, directly disobeying Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

6. Emotion Prime
We would like you to describe a time that you felt angry (excited/afraid). Please describe how you felt as vividly and in as much detail as possible. It is okay if you do not remember all the details. Just be specific about what exactly it was that made you angry and what it felt like to be angry. Take a few minutes to write out your answer. _______________________________

7. Emotion Prime
Excited “I got a new CD, it was the first PVRIS record. It was so good, beyond my expectations. I was emotionally and physically excited while listening, my heart rate accelerated, my breathing was rapid and I was flooded with endorphins. So good.” Angry “i felt angry when people butted in front of me at the store the other day. it was very annoying.” “A person talking on their phone pulled out in front of me in heavy traffic and nearly hit me.” “I felt angry right now. You made it look like I finished this survey.”

8. Outcomes
Elaboration task
Emotions measure
Populist attitude index II

9. Outcomes
Who or what do you think has caused the situation Larry confronts, and what if anything should be done in response? _______________________________________ If you think back to Larry's experience, how does this situation make you feel? (Angry, Nervous, Inspired, Irritable, Excited, Afraid| 5-pt scale) Castanho Silva et al. index

10. Populist Attitude Index

11. Elaboration Task

12. Emotions Measure

13. Emotions Measure

14. Emotions Measure

15. Pilot Design II MTurk sample, September 2017, N=293
Populism index I (Bruno et al., 9 questions, 7-pt scale)
Stance on immigration
Demographic filler, attention check
Emotion prime (anger, excitement, none)
Larry narratives (immigration, on-hold)
Elaboration task
Emotions measure
Populism index II

16. Stance on Immigration

17. Emotion Prime

18. Larry on Hold
In 2016, Americans spent 900 million hours on hold. Over the course of a lifetime, the average American spends 43 days on hold. 
These two facts illustrate how the average consumer interacts with customer service over their lifetime and on a daily basis. To further explain this interaction, we would like to tell you about someone who has been affected by these facts. Larry lives in Zilla, Washington, as he has his whole life. He recently moved to a new home in town and consequently, his utility billing has changed. 
On the first day of the month, Larry received his new utility bill and discovered an error: he was charged for both his previous home and new home. He called his utility company to resolve the mistake; however, he was on hold for over an hour. Considering Larry lives in a small town, he is not sure why he was on hold for so long. After the long wait, Larry was connected to the right customer service agent, who resolved his billing issue. The correct parties were billed for the previous month's utilities.

19. Outcomes
Elaboration task
Emotions measure
Populist attitude index II

20. Elaboration Task

21. Populist Attitude Index

22. Emotions Measure

23. Emotions Measure

24. Emotions Measure

25. Conclusion
Not our main focus, but populist attitudes don’t seem to move very much
Priming emotions doesn’t do much to populism, but it may move…emotions
Different issues do more to move emotions