Political polarization and justice in society
Description
This thesis investigates political polarization and its impact on the function of political society. Political polarization is the divergence of political opinions to an ideological extreme. In recent years, increasing political polarization has become a threat to the function of democracies around the world. As political society becomes polarized among partisan lines, members of society belonging to diverging ideological groups adopt an "Us versus Them" mentality, contributing to the decline of the ability to reach an agreed upon consensus. Democracy, a governance system that seeks to manage competing interests in a united, peaceful society following agreed-upon rules of contingent consent, is threatened by political polarization. This thesis uses the case study of Israel to exemplify how a polarized society leads to the deterioration of democratic processes. Chapter one includes an introduction and a compilation of relevant scholarly definitions. Chapter two contains a scholarly analysis of political polarization and how it can affect democratic processes and the research design. Chapter three examines the case study of Israel. Chapter four develops a new positive theory for how polarization precludes justice in society. Chapter five considers objections and responses to that proposed theory. Chapter six offers an analysis of the findings, including an investigation of better understanding polarization, why it is essential to study, and suggestions for preventing and remedying polarization. The findings of this thesis indicate that political polarization is causally linked to democratic erosion and precludes justice in society.