ETH Workshop
Measuring, Modeling and Mitigating Opinion Polarization and Political Cleavage (MMM)
ETH Zurich, ML E12
September 13–15, 2023 Wednesday–Friday
Venue
ETH Zurich, Lecture Hall ML E12
ML Building, Tannenstrasse 3, 8006 ZürichLink to map
Synopsis
Political polarization and radicalization is more and more seen as a major threat for democratic countries, with alarming consequences. Therefore, research on this topic has vastly increased in different scientific disciplines. But the scientific discourse lacks an integrative perspective on polarization, merging methods and insights from different disciplines. Even more, we miss the exchange between formal modelers, political scientists and sociologists which only would allow to develop such a common perspective. Our workshop shall fill this gap, bringing together an interdisciplinary group of top scientists, to foster awareness, acceptance, and adoption of insights from the respective disciplines.
Contributions revolve around three interlinked topics:
1) Public opinion and opinion dynamics
- Polarization: ideology vs. issue stances
- Opinion dynamics: Mechanisms behind polarization dynamics
- Measuring Polarization: Moving beyond single dimensions
2) Elite polarization
- Measuring latent concepts: mapping ideology in a political space
- Political gridlock: Studying collaboration dynamics in polarized systems
- In-group vs. out-group: Studying group division strategies
3) Mitigation and mechanism design
- Opinion formation and change: Mechanism design and mitigation strategies
- Populism as a dividing mechanism
Download workshop program with abstracts (PDF, 11 pages)
Organisation
- Dr. Laurence Brandenberger, Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zürich
- Prof. Frank Schweitzer, Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zürich
The workshop receives financial support from the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF Grant No: IZSEZ0_220344) and from the Chair of Systems Design (ETH Zurich).
Program
Wednesday, September 13
Frank Schweitzer
Welcome and Introductory Remarks
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
See Abstract
September 13, 2023 | 09:30–09:50
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Introduction of Participants
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September 13, 2023 | 09:50–10:30
☕️ Coffee Break 🥐
10:30–11:00Session
Polarization as a Threat to Democracy?
Philip Leifeld (Chair/Discussant)
University of Essex, UK
September 1311:00 – 12:30
Markus Wagner
Do left-wing governments fuel far-right success?
Department of Government, University of Vienna
See Abstract
September 13, 2023 | 11:00–11:25
Katarzyna Sznajd-Weron
Depolarizing effect of strategic anticonformity – insights from the three-state 𝑞-voter model with bounded confidence
Department of Management Systems, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology
See Abstract
September 13, 2023 | 11:45–12:10
Lunch Break
12:30–14:00Session
Mechanisms Behind Polarization Dynamics
Rainer Hegselmann (Chair/Discussant)
Frankfurt School of Finance & Management
September 1314:00 – 15:30
Janusz Holyst
Why can’t we go back to paradise?
Faculty of Physics, Warsaw University of Technology
See Abstract
September 13, 2023 | 14:00–14:25
Jan Lorenz
How assimilative and idiosyncratic attitude change generate oscillations of public policy mood
Constructor University Bremen
See Abstract
September 13, 2023 | 14:45–15:10
☕️ Coffee Break 🥐
15:30–16:00Session
Mitigating (Online) Polarization
Sophia Schlosser (Chair/Discussant)
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
September 1316:00 – 17:30
David Garcia
Unpacking polarization: Antagonism and Alignment in Signed Networks of Online Interaction
Computational Social Science Lab, University of Konstanz
See Abstract
September 13, 2023 | 16:00–16:25
Gerardo Iniguez
Algorithmic bias and multidimensional political polarisation in online social networks
Department of Network and Data Science, Central European University Vienna
See Abstract
September 13, 2023 | 16:45–17:10
Thursday, September 14
Session
Belief Heterogeneity
Marco Steenbergen (Chair/Discussant)
Department of Political Science, University of Zürich
September 1409:00 – 10:30
Philip Leifeld
Tracing the Sources of Belief Contestation in Policy Debates
Department of Government, University of Essex
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 09:00–09:25
Eckehard Olbrich
Do we need more than one dimension to understand polarization?
Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in the Sciences, Leipzig
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 09:45–10:10
☕️ Coffee Break 🥐
10:30–11:00Session
Changing Opinions
Georges Andres (Chair/Discussant)
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
September 1411:00 – 12:30
Ali Faqeeh
Political polarization: Persistent hatred or issue-dependent sidings?
Department of Computer Science, Aalto University
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 11:00–11:25
Tanzhe Tang
An Empirical and Simulation Investigation of Bounded Confidence and Negative Influence in Opinion Dynamics using Stochastic Actor-Oriented Model
Department of Sociology, University of Groningen
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 11:45–12:10
Lunch Break
12:30–14:00Session
Measuring Polarization: Moving Beyond Single Dimensions
Gerardo Iniguez (Chair/Discussant)
Department of Network and Data Science, Central European University Vienna
September 1414:00 – 15:30
Marco Steenbergen/ Jelle Koedam
Multidimensional party polarization in Europe: Cross-cutting divides and effective dimensionality
Department of Political Science, University of Zürich
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 14:00–14:25
Sophia Schlosser
A Textual Time Capsule: A Text-Based Approach to Tracing Swiss Elite Polarization Across 130 Years
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 14:45–15:10
☕️ Coffee Break 🥐
15:30–16:00Session
Inferring Opinions and Reconstructing Relations
Katarzyna Sznajd-Weron (Chair/Discussant)
Wroclaw University of Science and Technology
September 1416:00 – 17:30
Rosa Benito
Polarization Metrics and Opinions Inference in Multipolar Systems
Universidad Politecnica de Madrid
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 16:00–16:25
Georges Andres
Reconstructing signed relations from interaction data
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
See Abstract
September 14, 2023 | 16:45–17:10
Friday, September 15
Session
Co-Evolution of Relations and Opinions
Ramona Roller (Chair/Discussant)
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
September 1509:00 – 10:30
Andreas Flache
When contact backfires, and when it does not. A social influence model of the dynamics of affective polarization
Department of Sociology, University of Groningen
See Abstract
September 15, 2023 | 09:00–09:25
Michel Grabisch
On the design of public debate in social networks
Centre d'Economie de la Sorbonne, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
See Abstract
September 15, 2023 | 09:45–10:10
☕️ Coffee Break 🥐
10:30–11:00Session
Mechanism Design and Polarization Mitigation Strategies
Laurence Brandenberger (Chair/Discussant)
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
September 1511:00 – 12:30
Natasha Wunsch
Democratic backsliding, attitudes towards democracy and affective polarization
Department of European Studies, University of Fribourg
See Abstract
September 15, 2023 | 11:00–11:25
Rainer Hegselmann
Polarisation in the bounded confidence model: A revised view
Frankfurt School of Finance & Management
See Abstract
September 15, 2023 | 11:45–12:10
Frank Schweitzer
Closing and Farewell
Chair of Systems Design, ETH Zurich
September 15, 2023 | 12:30–12:45
