Abstract
Becoming a politically involved individual has both positive and negative implications. In the heightened political state of recent years, conflicting political views have led to emotional flare-ups and deteriorated friendships. This study examined the following research questions: What are the characteristics of the conflict (topics and seriousness of conflict)?; What was the outcome of the conflict (conflict resolution)?; What interpersonal factors impacted the outcome of the conflict (cross-group friendships, closeness of friendship, seriousness of conflict)?; What intrapersonal factors impacted the outcome of the conflict (personality, depression, anxiety, attribution style, affect, authoritarianism)? This study surveyed 250 adults in an online format. The findings of this study indicated that a large number of participants experienced a negative impact on their friendships as a result of political disagreement and most did not see their conflicts resolved. Participants who rated the conflict as more serious and judged their political outgroup more negatively experienced more severe friendship conflict outcomes. In addition, participants who post-conflict reported a poorer quality of friendship and greater differences in closeness with friends also reported more negative affect when thinking about the topic of the conflict with their friend. Moreover, trait anxiety was related to the difference in closeness between friends after the conflict. With this research, I aim to bring attention to the negative social impacts of the political divide and work to identify factors that can help facilitate positive discourse among those with opposing political views.