According to TV4 Nyheterna, nearly half of those surveyed avoid political debates because they perceive the tone as overly aggressive. The survey found that participants describe debates as being 'at a sandbox level', filled with 'mudslinging' and 'everyone talking over each other'. A quarter of respondents reported that the harsh tone also impacts their inclination to vote, highlighting a direct link between debate conduct and electoral participation.
According to TV4 Nyheterna, Dan Hasson, a researcher and author of TCO's report 'Hövlighetskommissionen', described rudeness as having increased in society as a whole and within politics. He sees the harsh tone as a negative spiral that reduces trust in society, with risks of spreading to other politicians and voters. Hasson explained that when politicians behave rudely, it risks spreading to other politicians and naturally also to voters, creating a cycle that undermines democratic discourse.
In society as a whole, rudeness has increased and also within politics.
According to TV4 Nyheterna, Dan Hasson described how the risk increases of getting undemocratic politicians who excel in aggressive tactics. He warned that in the end, the risk increases of getting undemocratic politicians who are much better at this game than the others are. However, the survey also offers a hopeful note: if the conversational tone improved, 54 percent of respondents would engage with more politics compared to today. This suggests that improving debate conduct could significantly boost political engagement among the public.
The survey is based on 1,041 interviews conducted from February 20 to 27 this year. It is unclear what specific political debates or events were referenced, and the demographic groups included in the sample have not been disclosed. Additionally, the survey's methodology beyond the number of interviews, such as sampling techniques or question wording, is not detailed, and how it compares to previous years or similar studies on debate tone remains unknown. Concrete measures to improve the conversational tone in politics are also unspecified, leaving open questions about practical solutions to address the issue.
He sees the harsh tone as a negative spiral that reduces trust in society.
When politicians behave rudely, it risks spreading to other politicians and naturally also to voters.
In the end, the risk increases of getting undemocratic politicians who are much better at this game than the others are.