There’s More Common Ground in Political Disagreement Than You Think

In a recent experiment, participants consistently underestimated how positive these exchanges would be, especially when talking to someone with opposing views, writes Clay Routledge.that thinking about politics makes them feel angry and exhausted, and that too much attention is given to disagreements between Republicans and Democrats, a Pew Research Center study shows. When asked to describe the state of politics in the U.S. today in one word, the most common response is “divisive.

The results were striking. Participants consistently underestimated how positive these exchanges would be, especially when talking to someone with opposing views. Not surprisingly, they expected conversations with those who disagreed with them to be significantly more negative than talks with like-minded individuals. However, their assumptions were wrong: The actual experiences were similarly positive regardless of agreement or disagreement.

Continue reading at Dallas Morning News.