Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters
Document Type
Presentation
Publication Date
Fall 12-1-2021
Faculty Advisor(s)
Dr. John Compton
Abstract
This project seeks to examine College Republicans and College Democrats’ conceptions of partisanship. Specifically, I will test a theory set forth by Matt Grossmann and David A. Hopkins that claims the “Republican Party is best viewed as the agent of an ideological movement whose members are united by a common devotion to the principle of limited government” and the “Democratic Party is properly understood as a coalition of social groups whose interests are served by various forms of government activity” (2015). By performing a content analysis of College Republicans and College Democrats’ social media posts, I hypothesize that College Democrats will align more with Grossmann and Hopkins’ theory, while College Republicans will not. I suspect that College Republicans will be less focused on the principle of limited government and more focused on promoting the Republican Party, criticizing the Democratic Party, and commenting on specific issues and topics. Thus, I expect the two groups will remain asymmetrical, albeit for slightly different reasons than those put forth by the theory in question.
Recommended Citation
Goodrich, Philip, "Political Parties on Campus: College Republicans and College Democrats’ Conceptions of Partisanship" (2021). Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters. 477.
https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/cusrd_abstracts/477
Comments
Presented at the virtual Fall 2021 Student Scholar Symposium at Chapman University.