About this item
The 2016 election of Donald J. Trump invoked a time for reflection about the state of American politics and its deep ideological, cultural, racial, regional, and economic divisions. But one aspect that the contemporary discussions often miss is that these fissures have been opening over several decades and are deeply rooted in the structure of American politics and society. In Polarization: What Everyone Needs to Know Nolan McCarty takes readers through what scholars know and don't know about the origins, development, and implications of our rising political conflicts, delving into social, economic, and geographic determinants of polarization in the United States. While the current political climate seems to suggest that extreme views are becoming more popular, McCarty also argues that, contrary to popular belief, the 2016 election was a natural outgrowth of 40 years of polarized politics, rather than a significant break with the past.
About the Author
Nolan McCarty is the Susan Dod Brown Professor of Politics and Public Affairs. His research interests include U.S. politics, democratic political institutions, and political game theory. He is the recipient of the Robert Eckles Swain National Fellowship from the Hoover Institution and the John M. Olin Fellowship in Political Economy. He has co-authored or edited five books: Political Game Theory (2006, Cambridge University Press with Adam Meirowitz) , Polarized America: The Dance of Ideology and Unequal Riches (2006 and 2016, MIT Press with Keith Poole and Howard Rosenthal) , Political Bubbles: Financial Crises and the Failure of American Democracy (2013, Princeton University Press with Keith Poole and Howard Rosenthal) , Polarization: What Everyone Needs to Know (2019, Oxford University Press) , and Can America Govern Itself? (2019, Cambridge University Press with Frances Lee) . In 2010, he was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He earned his A.B. from the University of Chicago and his PhD from Carnegie Mellon University.
