Studying Emotions in Policy and Politics – A Focus on Methodology

The growing recognition of emotions' role in shaping politics and policy underscores their profound influence. Examples include emotions interplaying with values and identities, shaping collective action, (de-)legitimizing actors, fueling policy conflicts, and impacting policy change (Durnová, 2022; Hornung & Bandelow, 2024; Kuhlmann/Starke, 2024). Researchers increasingly integrate emotions into their work, using diverse approaches and methodologies. This includes qualitative and quantitative techniques, manual and automated textual analysis, and orientations spanning interpretive to positivist. However, there is a need to enhance these methodologies. This includes integrating insights from disciplines like psychology and sociology, which have long emphasised emotions. Regularly, methods of studying emotions remain obscure, with our trials and errors left outside the pages of published work. Furthermore, approaches frequently exist within academic silos, missing opportunities for learning and improvement. We invite work exploring emotions from diverse perspectives and at various stages of development. We are open to dialogue across different methodological orientations – interpretive, positive, and more. Contributions do not need to present fully established methods; rather, we value openness to sharing successes and challenges encountered along the research path. While a primary focus is on methods, papers will naturally intertwine methods with relevant theories and concepts for better understanding emotions in policy and politics. Finally, we welcome contributions from scholars from all backgrounds and levels of experience. This session aims to foster a collaborative environment where diverse perspectives enrich our understanding of different methodologies for studying emotions in policy and politics.

Durnová, A. (2022). Making interpretive policy analysis critical and societally relevant: emotions, ethnography and language. Policy & Politics, 50(1), 43-58. Fullerton, A. H., & Weible, C. M. (2024). Examining emotional belief expressions of advocacy coalitions in Arkansas' gender identity politics. Policy Studies Journal, 52(2), 369-389. Hornung, J., & Bandelow, N. C. (2024). Social identities, emotions and policy preferences. Policy & Politics, 1-22. Kuhlmann, J., & Starke, P. (2024). The politics of anger: emotional appraisal mechanisms and the French pension reform protests. Policy & Politics, 1-26. Sanchez Salgado, R. M. (2023). The many faces of the politics of shame in European policymaking. Policy Sciences, 56(3), 525-547.

1: What shapes and is shaped by emotions?
2: How do the different methodological assumptions affect the ways emotions are studied?
3: What methodological approaches are being developed to collect and analyze data on emotions?
4: What are advantages and challenges or different methodologies to study emotions?
5: How can emotions be integrated in (existing) theories and frameworks?

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