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The Mediating Role of Information Search in the Relationship Between Prejudice and Voting Behavior

Ditonto, Tessa

Authors



Abstract

Evidence on the extent to which prejudice serves as a barrier to black and Latino candidates for office is mixed. Some research has found that black and Latino candidates are disadvantaged in terms of their chances of winning election and that they are evaluated differently by voters, while other findings suggest that this may not be the case. This article examines the effects of racial prejudice on candidate evaluation and voting behavior. It uses a unique experimental design to test for direct effects of prejudice on candidate evaluation and voting behavior, as well as indirect effects of prejudice on these variables via the information that subjects seek out. I find that subjects higher in symbolic racism are less likely to vote “correctly” when their preferences most closely align with a black or Latino candidate and that they rate minority candidates more negatively than their white counterparts. I also find that subjects high in prejudice search for less information about minority candidates and that this less robust information search mediates the relationship between prejudice and candidate evaluation and vote measures. Results also suggest that increased information search may mitigate the effects of prejudice on correct voting.

Citation

Ditonto, T. (2020). The Mediating Role of Information Search in the Relationship Between Prejudice and Voting Behavior. Political Psychology, 41(1), 71-88. https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12599

Journal Article Type Article
Online Publication Date May 27, 2019
Publication Date 2020-02
Deposit Date Dec 5, 2019
Journal Political Psychology
Print ISSN 0162-895X
Electronic ISSN 1467-9221
Publisher Wiley
Volume 41
Issue 1
Pages 71-88
DOI https://doi.org/10.1111/pops.12599
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1276011