From outrage to awareness: A content analysis of polarizing language in U.S. congressional leaders’ Facebook posts and the potential of mindfulness for healthier political discourse

Abstract

This study examines Facebook posts by congressional leaders from the Democratic and Republican parties to better understand how political opponents are framed in contemporary online discourse. This study asks: How do high-ranking U.S. politicians frame political opponents on Facebook, and to what extent do their posts contain dehumanization, outrage rhetoric, and tribal identity framing? Two hypotheses guide this analysis. First, the prevalence of dehumanizing language, outrage rhetoric, and tribal identity framing is expected to differ significantly between Republican and Democratic politicians. Second, opponent-directed posts that contain one or more of these rhetorical categories are expected to generate higher levels of engagement than posts that do not contain any of these categories. To address these questions, this study employs a mixed-methods content analysis. Drawing on a growing body of research showing that mindfulness practice can reduce affective polarization and emotional reactivity, this study then considers how mindfulness might serve as a response to the reactive rhetoric it documents—both for the politicians who produce such language and for the audiences who absorb it. By examining the rhetorical features of elite political communication, this study contributes to the literature on political polarization and political communication while pointing toward mindfulness as a potential path toward healthier political discourse.