How Ideological Migration Geographically Segregates Groups
Motyl, M., Iyer, R., Oishi, S., Trawalter, S., & Nosek, B. A., How moral migration geographically segregates and polarizes groups. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology (Forthcoming)
60 Pages Posted: 8 Oct 2012 Last revised: 26 Oct 2013
Date Written: October 7, 2012
Abstract
Here, we advance the ideological migration hypothesis — individuals choose to live in communities with ideologies similar to their own to satisfy their need to belong. In Study 1, incongruity between personal and community ideology predicted greater residential mobility and attraction to more ideologically-congruent communities. In Study 2, participants who perceived their ideology to be at odds with their community’s displayed a decreased sense of belonging and an increased desire to migrate. In Studies 3 and 4, participants induced to view their current community as growing more incongruent with their own ideology expressed a decreased sense of belonging and an increased desire to migrate. Ideological migration may contribute to the rise in segregation and polarization of the American electorate.
Keywords: migration, social ecology, morality, politics, residential mobility, voting behavior
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