Rooting for the Same Team: Shared social identities in a polarized context

Abstract

Can shared identities help overcome political divides in polarized settings? We answer this question with a field experiment on Twitter during the Brazilian 2022 elections. Although both congruence in political (supporting the same candidate) and affective (rooting for the same football team) identities increase follow-backs and reduce blocks, the positive effect of shared affective identity weakens when information on political identity is available. Using observational live-streamed data from Twitter during the 2022 World Cup, we complement our analysis by exploring the public political leaning of Brazilian players. Analyzing the content of tweets posted by Brazilian nationals during the country’s games, we document significant differences in fans’ reactions depending on their political alignment with the specific players that triggered relevant events in the game. Our results indicate that political identity can hinder the potential of other shared identities to reduce political divides and foster social cohesion.

Keywords: Social Identity, Affective Polarization, Brazilian Elections, Social Media

JEL Classification: D72, D91, C93, Z20