Whether a talk with a political enemy goes well has almost nothing to do with what you're actually talking about.
March 26, 2026
Original Paper
The role of topic choice in cross-partisan conversations
SocArXiv · nygt3_v3
AI-generated illustration
The Takeaway
People often think avoiding 'hot-button' issues is the key to civil discourse. This study found that the 'politicalness' of a topic accounted for only 2% of how the interaction went; instead, the physical act of listening and perspective-taking mattered more than whether they were debating taxes or the weather.
From the abstract
Animosity between Republicans and Democrats has escalated for decades, threatening the health of American democracy. Research on intergroup contact suggests that talking across party lines can reduce this affective polarization, yet studies disagree on whether confronting or avoiding political disagreement is the more effective strategy. We address this debate using a large-scale integrative experiment in which Republicans and Democrats engaged in face-to-face video conversations, with levels of