Mechanism And Motivator Of Affective Polarization In Feminism Discussion

The digital media environment facilitates information access and the exchange of opinions,but also provides a breeding ground for affective polarization.As feminism gains increasing traction in China,more and more people join the discussion.Behind the supportive voices,there are also many skeptics.In today’s public opinion sphere,the attitudes and opinions towards feminism are far from unified,and even riddled with division and confrontation.Accompanying the collision of opinions is the affective polarization:individuals with opposing positions bring extreme emotions into the discussion,engaging in mutual accusations through the forms of stigmatization,demonization,and personal attacks.The proliferation of animosity becomes the ultimate outcome of almost every gender-related discourse,impeding the possibility of rational discussions and hindering the dissemination of gender equality ideals.Given the aforementioned reasons,it is crucial and necessary to clarify the underlying causes of affective polarization in Chinese feminism discussions.This study,grounded in social identity theory,examines the causes of affective polarization surrounding Chinese feminism discussion from two perspectives:the generative mechanism(feminist identify over feminist opinion vs.feminist opinion over feminist identity)and motivators(in-group favoritism vs.out-group animus).The research employs an experimental methodology with a sample of 295 Chinese university students,utilizing two sets of 2 × 2 between-subjects experiments,one of which is an in-group experiment,and the other being an out-group experiment.In the in-group experiment,participants read a vignette about a fictional character whose feminist identity aligns with their own and subsequently rated their feelings toward that character.In the out-group experiment,participants read a vignette about a fictional character whose feminist identity contradicts their own,followed by rating their feelings toward that character.Each experimental exposed participants to one of four types of information about the fictional character:only feminist identity,only feminist opinions,neither feminist identity nor opinions,or both feminist identity and opinions.After reading the vignette,participants rated their overall impression of the fictional character to measure the degree of affective polarization.The main findings of this study are as follows:(1)Compared to feminist identity,feminist opinions lead to higher levels of affective polarization.(2)Animosity towards members of feminist out-groups serves as the primary motivator behind affective polarization,while affinity towards individuals of feminist in-groups does not significantly impact affective polarization.(3)There is a mismatch between feminist identity and feminist opinions,whereby some individuals who hold supportive feminist views do not identify themselves as feminists.Based on the digital media ecology in China,this study explores the causes of affective polarization surrounding feminist issues,expanding the inclusiveness of affective polarization literature in non-political contexts in developing countries.From an individualized and affectively polarized perspective,it examines the obstacles encountered in the development of feminism in China,addressing the limitations of previous literature that focused on structural gender inequality and deepening the understanding of contemporary feminism development in China.On a practical level,this study employs a quantitative experimental research method to clarify the generative mechanism and motivator behind affective polarization of feminist issues in China,providing theoretical guidance for mitigating affective polarization and promoting consensus on gender equality.Moreover,in the context of the global spread of affective polarization,it offers insights for addressing affective polarization issues in non-Western and non-political contexts.