Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: In this paper, I ask what are the effects of negative information about a candidate on recall of information about the candidate and evaluation of the candidate.

Publication Type: Paper (prepared oral presentation)
Abstract: Negative campaigns are widespread but there is still a debate about the effects of negative political advertising (see Lau, 1985; Lau et al., 1999). In particular, it has been suggested that the reliance on negative campaigns may backfire against the source (e.g., Matthews & Dietz-Uhler, 1998). In a series of studies we explored two distinct but related issues concerning the perception of politicians who rely on negative campaigns. First, we investigated the effects of different types of negative messages that attack the opposite candidate on the basis of either his/her political program or personal characteristics. Next, we separately assessed the effects on the two basic dimensions of social judgment, namely competence and warmth (Fiske et al., 2002). Results showed that sources of negative campaigns are more negatively evaluated when the attack is built around the opponents’ personal characteristics. Most importantly, results from both implicit and explicit measures supported the idea that the reliance on negative messages increases the perception of competence and conformity behaviors, whereas it has a negative impact on both controlled and spontaneous affective reactions.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Negative campaigning is extensively analysed in American political science, but the concept has not been studied in a comparative perspective. Negativity, however, is not exclusively an American phenomenon; hence, the present study serves a dual purpose: First it aims to further develop and adapt the existing theories on the dynamics of negativity. Second it supplements the existing literature by exploring the dynamics of negativity in a multiparty system. By studying six different channels of party communication in four Danish national election campaigns it is shown that alternative government parties – in accordance with the existing theories – are more negative than incumbent parties, and that ideology is (indirectly) correlated with the campaign tone. As opposed to the existing literature, losing parties are not more negative than winning ones in this study. Next, the study proposes that a party’s proportion of party identified voters and its rhetorical tone is negatively correlated and that parties go negative on issues that they enjoy issue ownership of.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: In this paper, we examine over 300 campaign emails sent by campaigns during the 2006 elections. We find that female candidates are more likely to engage in negative campaigning, but are also more likely to use male or gender neutral surrogates to deliver these negative campaign messages.