Intergenerational Tensions

The project focuses on the relationship between intergenerational tensions and electoral hostility in the US and beyond.

This multi-method project aims to:

• Assess the extent to which polarization and/or hostility are structured around intergenerational tensions;
• Specify what each generation reproaches to the other;
• Evaluate how intergenerational tensions play out in everyday life within family and society;
• Understand the relationship between democratic prejudice towards other generations (perceptions) and perceived negativity from other generations (mirror perceptions) to map the extent to which generational tensions are aggressive or defensive.

• Our proposed pilot research seeks to validate the bold research suggestion that the evolution of polarization and hostility in democratic society and the question of intergenerational tensions and mutual misunderstandings are in fact intricately related.
• Our past research on both phenomena leads us to believe that such a link is highly plausible, but we need to clarify its nature conceptually and test it empirically. If our model is confirmed, it will have significant implications that will need to be explored systematically using more complex sets of methods (e.g. experiments, family focus groups, etc) across comparative contexts and with a view to explore possible social and institutional mitigations and solutions which our unique solution-oriented four-step CODE process can lead to.

The project runs from January 2025 to June 2026.