There has been a simultaneous rise in income inequality and ideological polarization across old and new democracies in past decades. Although a large body of literature has been dedicated to...Show moreThere has been a simultaneous rise in income inequality and ideological polarization across old and new democracies in past decades. Although a large body of literature has been dedicated to exploring the relationship between the two factors in old democracies, new democracies have been largely neglected. In this thesis, I examine the effect of income inequality on mass ideological polarization in a sample of 36 new democracies. Using data from seven waves of the World Values Survey, I conduct several statistical analyses to test the hypothesis that higher levels of inequality are associated with higher levels of polarization. Although the study provides no robust evidence to support the hypothesized relationship, it shows that globalization and unemployment have a statistically significant effect on polarization. The study calls for further cross-national research to be conducted on the relationship between inequality and polarization in new democracies.Show less
