A study by the Berlin Science Center shows that voting for the AfD leads to a deterioration in well-being. The difference with other parties cannot be explained by the lower social status of the electorate.
As the Berlin Science Center (WZB) study published on Thursday shows, the negative rhetoric of right-wing populist parties such as the AfD can reduce personal satisfaction with life.
AfD voters experience a deterioration in well-being
People who turned to Germany’s AfD experienced a deterioration in their well-being, it was said. Those who turn away from the party, on the other hand, experience an improvement in their well-being.
The link between well-being and support for the AfD is “clear” and cannot be explained by socio-economic factors such as income or education, according to WZB economist Maja Adena and her colleague Steffen Huck.
Extensive survey series
To find out whether there is a link between satisfaction and preferences for political parties, the researchers launched a large survey among more than 5,000 participants in four waves from 2019 to 2021.
This is how AfD voters tick
According to the study, a clear pattern emerged. People who support the AfD are more dissatisfied with their personal lives and their financial situation than supporters of other parties. This relationship is particularly strong among new AfD supporters. They perceived both their personal and financial circumstances as worse.
The researchers suspect that the reasons for this causal relationship lie in the negative rhetoric of the AfD. Those who turn to the party are more exposed to this negativity, which is detrimental to their well-being.
How can you get AfD voters back?
According to the study, the link between well-being and AfD support can even be quantified. The authors’ estimates suggest that a new AfD supporter would need an additional monthly income of around 2,500 euros to return to the level of well-being he had before turning to the party.
The researchers therefore recommend that other parties emphasize positive issues instead of focusing on the AfD’s negative issues. “Successfully winning back voters requires other, ideally positive, topics,” Adena explains. The research appeared in the trade journal ‘Plos one’.
Source: Krone
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