Journal of Political Institutions and Political Economy > Vol 3 > Issue 3–4

Elite Polarization and Partisan Think Tanks

E. J. Fagan, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA, ejfagan@uic.edu
 
Suggested Citation
E. J. Fagan (2022), "Elite Polarization and Partisan Think Tanks", Journal of Political Institutions and Political Economy: Vol. 3: No. 3–4, pp 395-411. http://dx.doi.org/10.1561/113.00000065

Publication Date: 01 Dec 2022
© 2022 E. J. Fagan
 
Subjects
Legislatures,  American political development,  Interest groups,  Political history,  Time series analysis
 
Keywords
Think tankspolarizationU.S. political parties
 

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In this article:
Introduction 
The Intertwined History of Partisan Think Tanks and Polarization 
Data 
Results 
Discussion 
References 

Abstract

This paper argues that partisan think tanks played an important role in the rapid polarization of American politics that began in the late 1970s. Scholars of polarization conclude that political elites polarized long before their voters or districts did, directing our attention toward causes of elite polarization. I argue that partisan think tanks, particularly the Heritage Foundation, played an important role in elite polarization. Using data on partisan think tank testimony before Congress, newspaper citations and revenue from 1973 to 2016, I examine the time series relationship between partisan think tank outputs and polarization in Congress. I find strong evidence that partisan think tanks are related to polarization in Congress and they relationship is not spurious, but that the correlation is so close that think tanks likely function as a mechanism for other forces polarizing the political system to actualize their preferences. I conclude that researchers should further explore potential causes of both elite polarization and the growth of partisan think tanks.

DOI:10.1561/113.00000065

Online Appendix | 113.00000065_app.pdf

This is the article's accompanying appendix.

DOI: 10.1561/113.00000065_app

Companion

Journal of Political Institutions and Political Economy, Volume 3, Issue 3-4 Special Issue - The Political Economy of Polarization
See the other articles that are part of this special issue.