Developing strategies to counter polarization – one person at a time

As we come into the holiday season and prepare for parties and large family gatherings, it seems like a good time to think about how we’re going to deal with relatives and friends who hold very different political beliefs and loyalties from us, and are more than willing to broadcast them forcefully in parties or around the dinner table.

On November 18, we’re going to focus on what we, as individuals, in one-on-one situations, can do to counter “affective polarization” – in which partisans on both sides go beyond policy differences to the point that they strongly dislike or even hate people who hold different political or cultural views.

Here are three books we're going to use to develop strategies:

High Conflict: Why We Get Trapped and How We Get Out, by Amanda Ripley

The Power Of Strangers: The Benefits Of Connecting in a Suspicious World, By Joe Keohane

How To Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide, by Peter Boghossian & James Lindsay.

It would be great if you could read one of these books -- whichever one strikes your fancy -- they're all fantastic reads -- and then be ready to tell us how we might use lessons from your book to reduce polarization.

If you don’t have time to read one of the three books, or if you’re not sure which book you’d like to read, here are some podcasts to help you learn more about the books quickly:

High Conflict: Why We Get Trapped and How We Get Out, by Amanda Ripley
https://www.amandaripley.com/high-conflict
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fcffJoQEnVQ
https://www.cbsnews.com/video/author-amanda-ripley-on-avoiding-high-conflict/#x
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGUfOqZOqG8

The Power of Strangers: The Benefits of Connecting in a Suspicious World, by Joe Keohane
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alIR-5pRTwM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Wm2-OfcrOk

How to Have Impossible Conversations: A Very Practical Guide, by Peter Boghossian & James Lindsay
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fb-jhdn118
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dx8Ge7c4cyY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nBEiUiisak

I’m looking forward to engaging with this great group again in a few weeks! See you then!

Bill