Holding the Line: Social Norms and Party-Line Voting
Earlier this year, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell voted to acquit former President Donald Trump on a single article of impeachment, charging him for “incitement of insurrection” over the January 6 riot at the Capitol. Although he voted to acquit Trump, McConnell harshly criticized him shortly after the impeachment trial, saying that rioters had been “fed wild falsehoods by the most powerful man on Earth.” McConnell also added, “Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day.”1
Like McConnell, many Republican senators criticized Trump for his actions but voted to acquit him anyway.1a Ultimately, Trump was found not guilty in a 57-43 vote, 10 votes short of the supermajority needed to convict him.
It is not surprising that a majority of Democratic senators voted to convict, while a majority of Republican senators voted to acquit. The degree of party-line voting in the United States has increased substantially over the last few decades.2 The percentage of party unity votes for both the Senate and the House of Representatives rose from 32% in 1970 to 70% in 2020.3,4
There are many reasons why parting-line voting has increased substantially over the last few decades. From a behavioral science perspective, social norms are one major explanation for the increasingly distinct voting records of Democrats and Republicans in Congress.
References
- Rogers, A., & Raju, M. (2021, February 13). McConnell blames Trump but voted not guilty anyway. Retrieved February 28, 2021, from https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/13/politics/mitch-mcconnell-acquit-trump/index.html
1a. Goodman, R., & Asabor, J. (2021, February 15). In their own words: The 43 republicans’ explanations of their votes not to Convict Trump in impeachment trial. Retrieved March 10, 2021, from https://www.justsecurity.org/74725/in-their-own-words-the-43-republicans-explanations-of-their-votes-not-to-convict-trump-in-impeachment-trial/ - Dancey, L., & Sheagley, G. (2018). Partisanship and Perceptions of Party-Line Voting in Congress. Political Research Quarterly, 71(1), 32-45.
- Carney, E. N. (2015, March 16). Party unity standing together against any action. Retrieved March 4, 2021, from http://library.cqpress.com/cqmagazine/file.php?path=/files/wr20150316-2014_Party_Unity.pdf
- Zeller, S. (2021, March 03). No quarter for centrists in House: 2020 Vote Studies. Retrieved March 04, 2021, from https://www.rollcall.com/2021/03/03/no-quarter-for-centrists-in-house-2020-vote-studies/
- Bicchieri, C. (2006). The grammar of society: The nature and dynamics of social norms. New York: Cambridge University Press.
- Thompson, W. E., & Thompson, M. L. (2014). Mature motorcyclists: violating age norms and loving it. Deviant Behavior, 35(3), 233-242.
- Costarelli, S. (2005). Affective responses to own violations of ingroup norms: The moderating role of norm salience. European Journal of Social Psychology, 35(3), 425-435.
- Ersoy, N. C., Born, M. P., Derous, E., & van der Molen, H. T. (2011). Effects of work‐related norm violations and general beliefs about the world on feelings of shame and guilt: A comparison between Turkey and the Netherlands. Asian Journal of Social Psychology, 14(1), 50-62.
- Giguère, B., Lalonde, R. N., & Taylor, D. M. (2014). Drinking too much and feeling bad about it? How group identification moderates experiences of guilt and shame following norm transgression. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 40(5), 617-632.
- Carlsmith, J. M., & Gross, A. E. (1969). Some effects of guilt on compliance. Journal of personality and social psychology, 11(3), 232.
- Konecni, V. J. (1972). Some effects of guilt on compliance: A field replication. Journal of personality and social psychology, 23(1), 30–32.
- Helweg‐Larsen, M., & LoMonaco, B. L. (2008). Queuing Among U2 Fans: Reactions to Social Norm Violations 1. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 38(9), 2378-2393.
- Kam, C. C. S., & Bond, M. H. (2009). Emotional reactions of anger and shame to the norm violation characterizing episodes of interpersonal harm. British Journal of Social Psychology, 48(2), 203-219.
- Ohbuchi, K. I., Tamura, T., Quigley, B. M., Tedeschi, J. T., Madi, N., Bond, M. H., & Mummendey, A. (2004). Anger, blame, and dimensions of perceived norm violations: Culture, gender, and relationships. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 34(8), 1587-1603.
14a. Mendoza, S. A., Lane, S. P., & Amodio, D. M. (2014). For members only: ingroup punishment of fairness norm violations in the ultimatum game. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 5(6), 662-670.
14b. Knoch, D., Pascual-Leone, A., Meyer, K., Treyer, V., & Fehr, E. (2006). Diminishing reciprocal fairness by disrupting the right prefrontal cortex. science, 314(5800), 829-832. - Breuninger, K. (2021, February 16). Republicans who voted to convict Trump in impeachment Trial face backlash. Retrieved March 09, 2021, from https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/16/republicans-who-voted-to-convict-trump-in-impeachment-trial-face-backlash-.html
About the Author
Shi Shi Li
Shi Shi is currently a graduate student studying behavioral and decision sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. She is interested in using insights from behavioral science to solve a wide range of problems facing our society today. When she is not reading the latest behavioral science papers, she enjoys painting and playing video games with her friends. She also holds bachelor’s degrees in economics and psychology from the University of Southern California.
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