Studies in Script Theory: III. Ideology and Political Imagination
Author(s): Rae Carlson and Julie Brincka
Source: Political Psychology, Vol. 8, No. 4 (Dec., 1987), pp. 563-574
Published by: International Society of Political Psychology
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Political Psychology,Vol. 8, No. 4, 1987
Studiesin ScriptTheory:III.
Ideologyand PoliticalImagination
Rae Carlson' and JulieBrincka
Twohypotheses
derived
scriptswere
fromTomkins'theory
of ideological
1 month
testedin a studyof voters'
prior
perceptions
of majorcandidates
tothe1984presidential
andcommunity
adults"cast"
election.
Collegestudents
in imaginaryTV dramasrepresenting
candidatesas leadingcharacters
triadsofaffects,
an abridgedverhumanistic
vs normative
and completed
sionof Tomkins'
Scale.
were
Polarity
Specific
predictions that(1) Republican candidates
Reaganand Bush wouldbe assignedtoplotsdealingwith
normative
while
canDemocratic
affects
ofexcitement,
anger,andcontempt,
didatesMondale and Ferrarowouldbe assignedto plots dealingwith
humanistic
andshame;(2) menwouldmore
affects
ofjoy,distress,
frequently
endorsea personalnormative
ideological
posture,womena morehumanisticposture.
Bothhypotheses
weresupported
(p < 0.001andp < 0.02,respecshowedno moderating
tively).Respondents'
politicalpartypreferences
effects.
KEY WORDS: affect;humanistic
vs. normative
candidates;scripttheory.
ideology;presidential
INTRODUCTION
Wehaveknownsinceancient
timesthatcitizens'
resonance
topolitical
leadersrestson affectas wellas rationaljudgment,
and thatpoliticalattitudesareembedded
inlargerpersonaldispositions.
Yettheliterature
ofpoliticalpsychology
twodivergent
seemsto represent
in
Classic
studies
paths.
thepersonological
mode(e.g.,Adornoetal., 1950;Smithetal., 1956)have
and shownhowtheseemergefrom
exploredgeneralpoliticalorientations
New Brunswick,New Jersey08903.
'Departmentof Psychology,RutgersUniversity,
563
of PoliticalPsychology
@ 1987International
0162-895X/87/1200-0563$05.00/1
Society
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CarlsonandBrincka
564
thecomplexities
and idiosyncracies
of individual
In contrast,
experience.
studiesofresponse
tospecific
leaders
tend
to
on
surpolitical
rely large-scale
research
and
meticulous
of
vey
yield
analyses politicalpreferdemographic
enceandvotingbehavior.Whileeachtradition
is valuablein itsownright,
the personological
and social-sciences
approachesremainsomewhatisolatedby different
conventions.
methodological
Thispaperreports
a studyfrom
themiddle
a theoretically
motiground:
vatedinvestigation
ofvoters'"political
in
about
canimagination" thinking
didatesforthepresidency
andvicepresidency
oftheUnitedStatesinthe1984
election.
Theoretical
workon affects
comesfromTomkins'
general
guidance
and
The
aimis to en(1962,1963a),ideology(1963b,1965)
scripts
(1985).
the
of
affect-based
as a powerful
courage study
ideologicalscripts
wayof
twodifferent
tounderstanding
a majoraspectofourpouniting
approaches
liticallife.
IDEOLOGICAL
SCRIPTS
A basicpremise
ofTomkins'theory
is thata coherent
of
organization
andfeeling
underlies
individuals'
topolitical
leadersas well
thought
response
as otheraspectsof personaland politicallife.In themostcontroversial
- indomains
issuesrecurring
centuries
ofWestern
asseparate
through
thought
as mathematics,
government,
philosophyof science,and child-rearing
- Tomkins
a basicpolarity
between
hupractices
(1963b,1965)hasidentified
manisticand normative
ideologicalpostures.
Humanists
andnormatives
makeexplicit
theirfundamental
asrarely
aboutwhatis realandvaluableinlife.
sumptions,
yetthesepervadefeelings
Theydealwithsuchquestionsas: Arepeoplebasicallygood,or musttheir
evilpropensities
be guardedagainst?Arevaluesthatwhichhumanbeings
of humanwishes?Oughtpeoplemaxwish,or do valuesexistindependent
- forhunger
imizetheirdrivesandaffects
andsex,selfandothers,
workand
- or shouldtheybe governed
detachment
risk,intimacy,
play,novelty,
by
normsthatin turnmodulatedrivesand affects?
Is humanweakness
to be
toleratedand ameliorated,
or forbidden
and punished?(adaptedfrom
Tomkins,1965).
Abstract
as thesequestions
between
mayappear,Tomkins'distinction
humanistic
andnormative
has
amenable
to emideological
postures proven
and normatives
havebeenfoundto differ
intheir
piricalstudy.Humanists
and in thevaluetheyplaceon such(humanistic)
self-descriptions
qualities
as commitment,
love,andcare,as against(normative)
qualitiesofwill,purinthenapose,andcompetence
(CarlsonandLevy,1970).Theyalso differ
tureoftheirmoraljudgments
facial
ofaffect
(Lieberman,
1982),
expressions
(Vasquez, 1975),and in quasijudicialjudgments(Williams,1984),wherenorThis content downloaded from 62.44.111.145 on Tue, 07 Jul 2015 10:17:29 UTC
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Ideologyand PoliticalImagination
565
mativesweremorereadyto expressdisgustwithbothwrongdoers
and
of crime.
victims
A majornewformulation
ofscript
1985;1987)places
theory
(Tomkins,
in thebroaderand richercontextof a comprehensive
ideologicalpolarity
ofpersonality.
an important
in
theory
category
Ideologicalscripts
represent
a largertaxonomy
of scripts.2
Ideologicalscriptsare "socialinheritances"
thatprovidean orienting
visionof whatlifeshouldbe, and whatitshould
notbe. Likeanyscript,
an ideologicalscriptrestson a basiccoreofaffect.
it offersa looseinterpretive
Like manyscripts,
formulaforjudgingwhat
is realandvaluable.However,
aredistinguished
fromother
ideological
scripts
kindsofscripts
intheir"sharability"
andemphasis
on the"shoulds"indealingwithissuesin socialand politicallife.
Fromthericharrayofnewimplications
inTomkins
offered
(1985,1987)
formulation
ofscript
threelinesofthought
theory,
providethebackground
forthepresent
study:(a) an accountof theoriginsof ideologicalpolarity
inthedevelopment
ofsocialstratification;
ofaffects
into
(b) thepartitioning
normative
and humanistic
shame,
(anger,contempt,
excitement)
(distress,
forgender-specialization
in thesocializajoy) triads;and (c) consequences
tionofaffect,
andfurther
ofresulting
when
implications
ideological
scripts
thesebecomesalientat decision-making
pointsin thelifeof anysociety.
1. Originsofideological
areseeninsocialstratification
based
polarity
on adversarial
nomadic
warriors
settled
(as
conquest
subjugated
agriculand enforceturalists).
Conquestand ruledemand"order":acknowledged
ablestandards,
as wellas a hierarchical
ofsociallife.[Forhistorconception
ical evidenceand interpretation
of this and the following
points,seeTomkins(1987).]
2. Socialstratification
introduces
foraffective
life.Thosewho
priorities
rulemustbe strong,
and
of
on
decisive, capable imposing
properstandards
theruled.Theymustbe readyto punish(anger),to derogate
inferiors
(conandtopursuetheirvisionary
aims(excitement),
whether
forpersonal
tempt),
or socialgoals.Bywayof contrast,
the"ruled"-women,children,
slaves,
andotherlower-status
are
as loving,
persons
pictured
timid,
distressed,
shy,
and humblein contrast
to theangry,proud,contemptuous
warrior-ruler.
thusgenerates
a contrast
basedon socialpower:anger
Ideologicalpolarity
vs distress
in therealmof punishment,
vs shamein therealmof
contempt
vs enjoymentin the realm of positive
humiliation,and excitement
celebrations.
suchas commitment
andnuclear
havebeenstudied
em2Other
script-structures,
scripts,
scripts
inprevious
work(Carlson,1981,1982,1986b).Foran analysis
ofideological
pirically
scripts
as thesebearuponissuesofpolicy-formation,
theconductofpsychological
andconinquiry,
viewsof women,children,
and families,
see Carlson,1986a.
temporary
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Carlsonand Brincka
566
is suchthat
ofaffects
thepartitioning
stratified
3. In anyhighly
society
and
womenare expected(and expect)to be specializedforjoy, distress,
byexcitement,
(andexpect)to be motivated
shame,whilemenareexpected
[Forevidencethatsuch"rules"governthesocializaanger,and contempt.
seeBlock(1973.)Forevidence
inmodernindustrial
tionofaffect
societies,
seeCarlson
of
in
affect-based
the
construction
differences
ofgender
scripts,
and Carlson(1984).]
on
whichplacesblamesquarely
ofthe"ruler,"
Butnormative
ideology
the
a hostof protests
thosewho sufferand complain,generates
against
arebynomeansgender
Protests
suchnorms.
socialcostofupholding
specific.
thenormsand thosewhowishto
Theyincludethosewhowishto modify
were
and outragedmasculinity
join the rulers.Suppressedfemininity
movements
ofthe1960s.("Makelove,not
intheprotest
equallyprominent
war"and"offthepigs" "fistsandflowers"wereequallyendorsed
bymen
ofaffects
thatnormsemphasize
andwomen.)Granted
gender
specialization
feminine
goodness),menand womenmaybe equally
strength,
(masculine
of societalnorms.
or upholders
foundamongtheprotestors
areappliedto thepoliticalclimateof
Whensuchabstract
conceptions
a hostofhumanistic
ourownhighly
stratified
society-onethathasgenerated
a normative
whileretaining
ideologicalposture-itseemsobvious
protests
thatideologicalscriptswillbe mostsalientwhensuchpolarities
emergein
electionas an opportunity
nationalelections.Seizingthe1984presidential
wefocusedontwomajorproposifromTomkins'
totestderivations
theory,
ofaffects
underlies
normative
vs. humanistic
tions:(a) a distinctive
pattern
aresuchthatmenaremore
and(b) genderdifferences
ideological
postures,
andwomena humanistic,
personalideology.
likelyto espousea normative,
RATIONALE AND HYPOTHESES
between
electionposedso sharpa contrast
Rarelyhas a presidential
in
1984.
humanistic
andnormative
as
that
afforded
Long
ideological
postures
and publicrecords
beforetheelectionpartyplatforms,
campaignoratory,
ofthecandidates
a polarization.
established
candidates
Reagan
Republican
in supportforthe
a buildupofarmaments,
cutbacks
andBushemphasized
and unsuccessful,
to
adherence
"family"
indigent
policiesthatunderscore
traditional
and
fiscal
to
meant
norms,
policies
encourageentrepreneurial
adventure.
Democratic
candidates
Mondaleand Ferraroposeda contrastsocialpolicies
ingnationalagenda:armscontrolvs military
expenditures,
of concernfortheindigent
and unemployed,
"family"
policiessupportive
offeminist
concerns
the"pro-choice"
Courtdeci(e.g.,upholding
Supreme
societalneeds(e.g., concern
sion),and fiscalpoliciesaimedat long-range
for currenttrade imbalanceand unemployment).
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Ideology and Political Imagination
567
drawnin themonths
Withimplicit
priorto
ideologicalissuessharply
basesof voters'
theelection,we soughtto studythemoresubtleaffective
humanistic
vs normative
ofcandidates
ideological
representing
perceptions
and
to
test
the
of
differences
inresponsecondary
hypothesisgender
positions,
dents'personalideologicalposture.
wasthatcandidates
1. Themajorhypothesis
ReaganandBushwould
as representing
a normative
triadofaffects
be perceived
anger,
(excitement,
wouldbeperceived
interms
whilecandidates
MondaleandFerraro
contempt),
of a humanistic
triad(joy,distress,
shame).
was therecognition
thatmen
2. Cross-cutting
thisgeneralprediction
in the
to
decisions
their
distinctive
and womenbring electoral
experiences
be
more
thatwomenwould
socialization
ofaffects.
Herewepredicted
likely
one.
to espousea humanistic
ideology,mena normative
arenotso obviousas theymayappear.Complexities
Thesepredictions
or normative
ideolareintroduced
bythevariouswaysinwhichhumanistic
A normative
heromaybe celebrated
byindividuals.
ogiesare constructed
inupforqualitiesas an avenger,
orsheereffectiveness
formoralrectitude,
socialnorms.Humanistic
holding
protagonists
maybevaluedforsuchdiverse
of moretenderaffects,
or efpersonalembodiment
qualitiesas sensitivity,
insocialreform.
fectiveness
inversions
ofstraightforward
Moreover,
predictionsmightbe dictatedby respondents'
wishto perceivea candidatein
terms.(Forexample,a normative
wishto
compensatory
Republican
might
hismorehumanequalities.
temper
Reagan's"hawk"imagebyemphasizing
A humanistic
Democratmightportray
Mondaleas a "winner"
bystressing
ofdecisiveness
ina normative
andstrength
qualities
mode.)Working
against
ourhypotheses
wouldbe journalistic
of Reaganas a "niceguy,"
portrayals
Bushas a "preppy,"
Mondaleas a "strait-laced
or Ferraro
Scandinavian,"
as either"feminine
ideal"or "opportunistic
upstart."
METHOD
Overview
election,college
Duringthe monthpriorto the 1984 presidential
students
and community
adultswereaskedto "cast"majorcandidates
for
nationalofficeas centralcharacters
in imaginary
TV dramasrepresenting
normative
vs humanistic
affects.
werealso askedto complete
Respondents
an abridgedversionof Tomkins'(1964)PolarityScale. Theywereguaranteedanonymity,
askedto complete
theforms
at leisure,andto return
them
an
to thesecondauthor.From initialpoolof 150respondents
137returned
questionnaires.This reportis based on 123 responses,afterdiscardingthe
10% of returnsthatviolatedinstructions
by assigningunequal numbersof
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568
Carlsonand Brincka
statistics
U
"plots"to thefourcandidates.
Nonparametric
(Mann-Whitney
test,Fisher'stest,X2)wereusedin testing
hypotheses.
Subjects
fromcoursesin
Collegestudents
(n = 63; ages20-31)wererecruited
psychology,
politicalscience,andthecollegebandina largeStateUniversiadults(n = 73; ages20-61+) weredrawnfroma highschool
ty.Community
and staff,employees
of an insurance
and acquaintances
faculty
company,
of the secondauthor.The finalsampleconsistedof 27 collegemen(9
8 Republicans,
8 Independents,
2 Other),32 collegewomen(13
Democrats,
6 Republicans,
10 Independents,
3 Other),38 community
men
Democrats,
16 Independents,
I Other),and26 commu(8 Democrats,13Republicans,
9 Republicans,
5 Independents,
nitywomen(11 Democrats,
1 Other).No
differences
weresignificant.
intrasample
demographic
Measures3
PoliticalImagination
Task(PIT)
Briefplotsummaries
ofimaginary
TV dramaswereconstructed
bythe
first
authortorepresent
sixprimary
affects
with
four
(Tomkins,
1962)
replicationsofeach.Plotswerereviewed
theoriginator
ofthe
byS. S. Tomkins,
foradequacyinrepresenting
affects.
theory,
specific
Subsequently,
plotswere
naive
ofan undergraduate
categorized
independently
byrelatively members
research
seminar.A totalof 120judgments
(24 plotsx 5 judges)resulted
in96% agreement
inassigning
to
affect
plots humanistic/normative
triads,
and 71% agreement
in codingspecificaffects.Notethatdisagreements
in
within
humanistic/normative
"Errors"
concodingwereessentially
categories.
sistedof confusions
of shame/distress
or of anger/contempt
(humanistic)
or anger/excitement
(normative).
wereaskedto imagine
fourmajorcandidates
fornationRespondents
al officeas centralcharacters
in imaginary
TV dramas,and to assignsix
wereunconstrained,
"plots"to each. Assignments
exceptthateach candidateshouldreceivesix.Thusanycandidatecouldreceive0-4assignments
toanyspecific
andnobalanceofpositive/negative
affect
wasimposed.
affect,
inthisstudy
areavailableonrequest
from
thefirst
author.
employed
3Copiesoftheinstruments
Fullexplication
of specific
affects
in thisstudyis givenin Tomkins
explored
(1962,1963a).
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Ideologyand PoliticalImagination
569
Eachplotcentered
as togender,
arounda leadingcharacter,
ambiguous
inan essentially
drama.Generaldirectives,
non-political
alongwithtwoexamples,are given.
Excitement
involved
themes
ofnovelty,
risk,andchallenge.
(Example:
"Thisplaytakesplaceduring
the1988Winter
Ourcentral
character
Olympics.
is thecoachoftheU.S. skiteam.Duringtheprogram
we seethecoachenbothindividualmembers
and theteamas a whole.Thereare
couraging
shotsof the finalcontestsbetweenleadingU.S. downhill
breathtaking
skiersandtheirmostformidable
fromtheWestGerman
competitors
team.")
Otherexcitement
scientific
anda "takeover"
plotsdealtwithtravel,
discovery,
in theworldof highfinance.
of
Joyplotsdealtwiththemesof reunion,familiarity,
preservation
sameness.
character
returns
fora 20th
(Example:"Inthisdrama,ourcentral
reunionof his/her
a good friend
fromundercollegeclassand encounters
the1960s.
graduate
days.In flashbacks,
theyrecallsharedexperiences
during
Warmedbythesememories,
betheyresolveto keepintouchinthefuture
causebothhaveso greatly
this
Other
themes
conenjoyed reunion.")
joy
cerneda family
ofthecentral
first
character's
reunion,
christening
god-child,
andpreservation
ofa tranquil
in
the
face
of
threats
community
bydevelopers.
themesof counteraction,
retribuAngerplotsconcerned
punishment,
tion.Specific
dramasdealtwithrepelling
ina 14th-century
marauders
historical drama,counteracting
fraudulent
scientific
of
work,prosecution a ring
of extortionists,
and a child'sconfrontation
of bulliesin school.
Distress
dramasconcerned
plotsdealtwithloss,grief,
suffering.
Specific
for
a
beloved
in
terminal
the
of
caring
dog
illness, plight agedpeopleevicted
fromtheirapartment,
of a flooddisaster,
and concern
caringforvictims
fora battered
childin a "hospital"drama.
other.
Contemptplotsinvolveddecisiverejectionof theunworthy
dramasdealtwithrejection
ofpornographic
filmsmasking
as "art,"
Specific
inan honorsystem,
ofa friend
whose
cheating
byfellowstudents
rejection
valueshad crumbled,
and corruption
in foreign
encountered
travel.
Shameplots("I want...but"
inTomkins'
dealtwithbarriers
to
theory)
affect
an accident
a young
positive
goals.Specific
plotsconcerned
thwarting
musician's
economic
majorrecital,
pressures
blighting
hopesofa collegeeducationin the1930sdepression,
lossof a firstlove,and failureto receivea
academicprize.
significant
PolarityScale
A 20-item
ofTomkins'(1964)Polarity
Scalewasusedto
abridgement
assess respondents'
Items
werechosento
personalideologicalpostures.
minimize
content
and
to
eliminate
those
that
had
"political"
provenobsolete
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Carlsonand Brincka
570
itemsretained
werenumbers
overthepast2 decades.(Specific
6, 8, 10, 12,
16,20, 22, 25, 26, 35, 37, 39, 41, 42, 43, 54, 57, 58, and 59.) Ourscoring
ofnormative
choices
"both"and"neither"
choices;thenumber
disregarded
was subtracted
fromthenumberof humanistic
choicesto arriveat an individual'sscore.Scoresrangedfrom- 11 to + 17,witha medianof 7. A
medianbreak,basedon theentiresample,wasusedincategorizing
respondentsas humanistic
or normative.
Posthocassessment
of re-test
reliability
(N = 29 over a 2-weekinterval)yieldedr = 0.74.
RESULTS
thatRepublican
Themajorhypothesis
candidates
predicted
Reaganand
Bushwouldbe morefrequently
in imaginary
castas protagonists
dramas
normative
affectsof anger,contempt,
and excitement,
while
portraying
Democratic
candidates
MondaleandFerrarowouldbe assignedto plotsinaffects
of distress,
of the
shame,andjoy. A summary
volvinghumanistic
is givenin Table I.
findings
thehypothesis
Overall,theresults
strongly
supported
(Mann-Whitney
U test,p < 0.001).TableI revealsthatReaganwascastinhumanistic
plots
34% of thetime,Mondale57%, Bush44%, and Ferraro65%. Data were
further
toconsider
theconsistency
withwhichsubgroups
ofresponanalyzed
dentsconfirmed
ourexpectations.
Collapsingdataintoa 2 x 2 table(four
candidatesx foursubgroups)
we foundthatof 16 possibleoutcomes,15
accordedwiththeoretical
test,p < 0.005).Thesoleexpredictions
(Fisher's
forcommunity
womentoperceptionwasa slight
(nonsignificant)
tendency
ceivecandidateBushas morehumanistic
thannormative.
Thesecondhypothesis
a genderdifference
inpersonalideopredicted
withwomenexpected
tobe morehumanistic
andmenmore
logicalpostures,
normative.
tothePolarity
ofthe
Scale,basedon a median-break
Responses
Table I. Humanisticand NormativeAffectProfilesof IndividualCandidates"
Candidate
Reagan
Hum Norm
Bush
Hum
Norm
Mondale
Hum
Norm
Ferraro
Hum
Norm
Respondents
49
113
65
97
100
62
52
111
College men
57
135
87
105
107
85
132
60
College women
91
137
93
135
131
97
141
87
Communitymen
54
102
81
75
84
72
94
62
Communitywomen
aNote. Entriesrepresentsumof humanistic(joy, distress,shame)and normative(excitement,
anger,contempt)plots assignedto each candidateby fourgroups of respondents.
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Ideology and Political Imagination
571
36 normative;
entiresample,showed29 of themento be humanistic,
fre=
18 normative
quenciesforwomenwere40 humanistic,
(X2 6.4; df = 1;
p < 0.02).
Dramatic Portrayalsof IndividualCandidates
Becausetherearevariouswaysofexpressing
ornormative
humanistic
it
of
to
know
how
individual
is
considerable
interest
just
ideological
postures,
candidates
wereperceived
For
this
reason
we
the
examined
byrespondents.
affect
attributed
to
each
of
the
four
candidates.
The
two
specific
profiles
mostfrequent
affects
assignedto each candidateare shownin Table II.
Menassignedhim
normative.
of
Portrayals Reaganwereconsistently
withcontempt
a closesecond.Womenagreed,
to angerplotsmostfrequently,
theorderto contempt/anger.
butreversed
Portrayalsof Mondaleweremorecomplex,althoughconsistently
of bothsexesmadeMondaletheheroof dishumanistic.
Collegestudents
choice.Community
women
tressplots,withshamethenextmostfrequent
men
a
reversed
theorder(to shame/distress);
community gave shame/joy
toassignmore
trend
wasforallwomen
order.Anunexpected
(nonsignificant)
excitement
thanjoy to Mondale,whereasmenrarelydid so.
castin
Bushwasmostfrequently
candidates,
Amongvicepresidential
in
women.
there
was
excitement
However,
plotsbymen, contempt
plotsby
a (nonsignificant)
cohortdifference:
adultsweremorelikelyto
community
to Bush(shameovercontempt
affects
bybothsexes,joy
assignhumanistic
overexcitement
Ferrarowas the
by women)thanwerecollegestudents.
heroineofhumanistic
ofrespondents.
plotsassignedbyall foursubgroups
wasthepreferred
orderforthreegroups,whilecommunity
men
Joy/distress
reversed
theorderto distress/joy.
Table II. Specific Affects Most
FrequentlyAssigned to Individual
Candidatesa
Affect
Candidate
Excitement
Joy
Anger
Contempt
Distress
Shame
Bush
Ferraro
Reagan
Reagan, Bush
Mondale, Ferraro
Mondale
thetwomost
aNote. Entriesrepresent
affectsassignedto each canfrequent
didate by entiresample.
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Carlson and Brincka
572
as a ModeratorVariable
On PartyPreference
forpossibleeffects
ofrespondents'
identifiWe analyzedourfindings
cationwithpoliticalpartiesandfoundnone.Apparently
themaineffect
of
candidates'
ideologicalposturesswampedanypartisantendencies
implicit
candidates
to positiveaffectplots.
to assignone'spreferred
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS
testof Tomkins'
Insofaras we are aware,thisis thefirstempirical
to examinelinkagesamongaffects,
of ideologicalscripts
ideology,
theory
havebroaderimplicaandresonance
to politicalleaders.Thusourfindings
tionsthanfamiliar
"politicalpolling,"and beginto exploretheaffectivethatunderlie
citizens'
resonance
topolitical
leaders.Several
cognitive
processes
seemworthconsidering
moreclosely.
facetsof our findings
Affective
Bases of IdeologicalScripts
Had ourstudymerely
established
thatRepublican
candidates
areperceivedas espousinga normative
ideologyand Democraticcandidatesa
humanistic
wouldbe mildly
butin no waysurone,theresults
interesting,
ourrespondents
werenotaskedtocharacterize
candidates
However,
prising.
in ideological
terms.Instead,theywereinvited
to assigncandidates
to centralrolesin imaginary
TV dramason thebasis of resonanceto implicit
affective
themesembeddedin conventional
(nonpolitical)
plots.Thatthe
results
effects
of cohort,gender,socio-economic
largely
swampedfamiliar
thattheaffective
basisof
status,and politicalpartyidentification
suggests
advancedinTomkins'
deserves
muchcloserstudy
ideological
scripts,
theory,
thanit has yetreceived.
In a morespeculative
offers
vein,we notethatcontemporary
history
someposthocsupportforourhypothesis.
Data collected
to
1984
the
prior
election
as a "niceguy,"andtheReagan/Bush
(inwhichReaganwasportrayed
ticket
wonin49 of50states)signalled
voters'
intuitive
ofRepubimpression
licancandidates
as fitting
dramatic
scenarios
with
dealing
anger,contempt,
andexcitement.
The"unravelling"
oftheReaganadministration
intheFall
of 1986is studdedwithrelevant
evidence.Considerthatanger(symbolized
inbothdomestic
andintheconbythepriority
givento armaments
budgets
ductof foreign
for
"social
butalso
affairs),
(notonly
contempt
weaklings"
forconstitutional
and
and
responsibilities Congressional
oversight), excitement(via encouragement
of "adventurism"
on thepartof WhiteHouse staff,
National SecurityCouncil employees,and mercenarieslauded as "freedom
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Ideologyand PoliticalImagination
573
lie at theheartof themanyinvestigations
and courtcasesthat
fighters")
the
administration
in
1986.
plagued Reagan
Gender Differencesin Ideological Postures
unnotedaffective
comWhereourfirst
testeda previously
hypothesis
unnotedideoponentof politicalideology,
thesecondexploredpreviously
of "known"differences
in affect-socialization
of men
logicalimplications
and women(cf. Block,1973;Lewis,1985).Ratherthanaskingmenand
womenabouttheirownaffective
weassessedtheirideological
experiences,
Thattheresults
a morehumanistic
orientation
among
postures.
supported
stanceamongmenis consistent
withprevious
work
women,anda normative
in theirconstruction
thatthesexesdiffer
of affect-laden
scenes
suggesting
(Carlsonand Carlson,1984).
Implicationsfor FutureInquiry
of the1984electionand itsaftermath,
we
Beyondtheparticularities
believethatourfindings
haveconsiderably
broaderimplications.
Mostimis thedemonstration
thatempirical
workbasedon Tomkins'script
portant
"connects"
diverse
linesofinquiry
toyieldan impressive
theory
arrayofsupand persons-in
portfora comprehensive
theoryof personality
society.
Whenourworkis linkedwithprevious
evidence
ofideological
postures
inmoresubtly
domainsofmoraljudgment
"political"
(Lieberman,
1982)or
a coherent
quasijudicial
judgments
(Williams,1984),thereemerges
picture
ofaffect-based
a broadrangeofvalue-laden
choices.When
scripts
underlying
of scripttheory
are appliedto thelivesof suchactivists
as 19th
principles
intheCivilRightsmovement
"freedom
riders"
ofthe
abolitionists,
century
of JewsunderNazi oppression,
or unheralded
1960s,"rescuers"
"helpers"
thepersonounderscores
(Carlson,1982),thenatureofcommitment
scripts
action.Whenexperimental
reveals
logicalbasesofeffective
political
inquiry
modesof constructing
affect-based
gender-specific
scripts(Carlsonand
"known"gender
Carlson,1984),we have movedbeyondreencountering
differences
to examinetheprocessesof thought
and feeling
thatgenerate
familiar
evidences
ofvalue-orientations
inthelivesofmenandwomen.When
- relatively
areoffered
semiprojective
measures
"freeresponse"
respondents
formats
unconstrained
by investigator-imposed
categories-weescapethe
hazardsof"political
with
its
undue
onmerely
polling"
emphasis
demographic
variables.
clearresults
ofthepresent
for
Dramatically
studyoffer
encouragement
further
ofTomkins'theory
as a framework
forinquiry
inpodevelopment
liticalpsychology.The power of the theoryand the generalityof its conThis content downloaded from 62.44.111.145 on Tue, 07 Jul 2015 10:17:29 UTC
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574
Carlson and Brincka
structs
areunderscored
thatthesecanillumine
as diverse
byevidence
problems
as addictions,
individual
and
standards,
development,
publicpolicy,scientific
in psychotherapy.
transference
Whenourimmediate
aretakenin
findings
thecontext
ofa growing
theimplibodyofresearch
theory,
exploring
script
cationsareextremely
broad.Tomkins'script
theory
mayprovidetheunifyof persons-in-society
thatwe havelongawaited.
ingconceptualization
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