This article examines how different modes of exposure to debates between presidential candidates affect both the criteria by which they are assessed and levels of learning about politics in an unobtrusive, distant context. In this study, 167 Portuguese undergraduate students were randomly assigned to either watch or listen to one of two 1986 dyadic presidential debates, rate the candidates on a series of items, and answer questions about the contents of the debate. We found that the mode of exposure only affected the assessment criteria of the lesser known presidential candidate. In fact, his personality appraisals carried more weight for viewers than for listeners, while the substantive performance was more important for those who listened to the debate. Although a more confrontational debating style lowered the ratings of the lesser known candidate, this was not conditional to mode of exposure. Moreover, video exposure to the debate resulted in higher levels of learning. In summary, this study supports the assumption that the visual cues in audiovisual formats are major factors of learning and prime personality traits as criteria for the appraisal of (relatively) unknown candidates.
Elections in Cape Verde, 1991-2016: Testing the second-order election model in a consolidated semi-presidential African democracy 1In this article, we analyse patterns of turnout and electoral choices of Cape Verde's citizens in different types of elections, looking at all legislative, presidential and local elections held between 1991 and 2016, and testing four hypotheses derived from the second-order election model about differences in terms of turnout, number of spoiled/blank papers, results for the incumbent party and the electoral success of smaller parties. Our results show that, in what regards turnout and electoral behaviour, local elections present the features of second-order elections much more clearly than the presidential elections in this semi-presidential regime. However, this pattern does not necessarily mean that voters look at the latter as less second-order, but since they often took place in the honeymoon period of the legislative electoral cycle, it may only mean that there were lower incentives to punish the incumbent and/or disengage from political participation.
It has been well established in the literature that “something like politicization” has occurred with regard to the European Union (EU). The phenomenon has been assessed and confirmed in different venues, including party manifestos, parliamentary debates and the media. However, studies tend to overlook the potential differences between distinct arenas of political discourse and to disregard the fact Europe is a multidimensional political issue. This chapter contributes to the debate on EU politicization by highlighting the differences between some of the arenas of political discourse, namely parliaments and media, and its potential consequences on how the EU is portrayed. Furthermore, the EU is also considered in its multidimensionality, allowing us to disentangle between polity and policy-related European issues. This chapter’s results show that policy-related issues are, in general, more addressed than polity-related ones; that economic- and financial-related matters still dominate the European debate; and that important differences emerge between parliaments and the media. The findings support both the need to consider the EU as a compound issue and how different arenas might picture the EU differently.
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