Social Representations and Political Emotions: Sentiment Shifts During the Reconstruction of History

Date of Award

12-1-2022

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology

First Advisor

Cristina J. Montiel, PhD

Abstract

History provides a cultural narrative through which a nation can navigate the political present. In the Global South, moments of democratization like the People Power revolution are emotionally charged events that serve as guideposts for the future of a nation. Our paper explores how the People Power revolution is associated with collective emotional features even after the event has passed. We explore how political emotions are discursively invoked to construct a representation of the People Power revolution through the lens of social representations. Using sentiment analysis, we analyze newspaper reports about the People Power revolution from the year 2000 to 2021. We identify different levels of positive and negative sentiments and the emotions of trust, anticipation, joy, anger, fear, and sadness. We then construct emotional storylines from the top words associated with these emotions. By locating the storylines within the different contextual events, we mapped the different shifts in emotional representations and how the meaning of People Power changes over the years. Our results show that political emotions are more nuanced and complex than originally formulated, with emotional overlaps and tensions necessitating further exploration. Furthermore, our study contributes knowledge on how collective political emotions serve as avenues through which the past interfaces with the present, as well as how the present context shapes our understanding of the past. Lastly, we discuss the promises and limitations of using sentiment analysis to study collective emotions through language.

Link to Full Text

Share

COinS