Voter enthusiasm drives active political involvement beyond passive agreement

Evidence

The second class of emotional arousal monitors current behavior. This system generates moods of enthusiasm or elation as our personal tasks and social activity succeed and generates moods of melancholy or depression as we experience failure. The behavioral approach system provides active feedback of our ongoing behavior and marshals the physical and mental resources necessary for success. These moods are essential for the proper performance of learned behavior. The variance in moods generated by the behavioral approach system provides an important marker for the strengthening or wavering of motivation. Thus, for politics, we ought to find that variations in enthusiasm ought to predict variations in political involvement. More precisely, during political campaigns, candidates must generate enthusiasm for themselves among voters in order to gain their support and to create active interest in the election. When voters respond to a candidate with enthusiasm, they are not merely evincing passive sympathetic reactions but sharing convictions and commitment to common endeavors. Rather than stopping, looking, and listening, enthusiasts throw themselves into the cause. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 1669

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the broader dual-process literature in political psychology (affective intelligence theory); also echoes the enthusiasm/participation findings in turnout research.