Maximilian Filsinger

@hakeemjefferson.bsky.social

In December 2025, @ackermannk.bsky.social and I got the exciting news that our project RECOGNITION: How Social Status and Recognition Shape Attachment to Democracy in France and Germany will be funded by the @agencerecherche.bsky.social & @dfg.de consortium for three years with around 450.000 €! 🎉

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

Hakeem Jefferson

Having a reckoning over the discipline’s obsession w/ polarization is long overdue. Here are my thoughts, which I’ve shared before. An important q is why so much of the polarization literature has been silent on the kinds of issues @lilymasonphd.bsky.social raises. substack.com/@thecolorlin...

substack.comBeyond PolarizationMy Remarks at Notre Dame's "Keeping the Republic" Conference

shorturl.atDemocracy and disadvantage: How subjective group relative deprivation undermines democratic support | European Journal of Political Research | Cambridge CoreDemocracy and disadvantage: How subjective group relative deprivation undermines democratic support - Volume 65 Issue 1

22 July

I wrote a blog post about our article (w/ Steffen Wamsler) in @ejprjournal.bsky.social. We show that a perceived sense of disadvantage is linked to higher support for autocratic alternatives which undermines the societal foundation of democracy. Blogpost: shorturl.at/kG1FZ Paper: shorturl.at/ov8jj

Empirical Political Science #Duisburg@emppolitikwiss.bsky.social

📢Neuer Blogbeitrag online! 🤔 Was passiert mit der Demokratie, wenn Menschen das Gefühl haben, als Gruppe benachteiligt zu werden? (1/3) #politicalscience #deprivation #Benachteiligung

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

Vanessa Schwaiger

@vanessaschwaiger.bsky.social

19 June

"Left behind" and an undemocratic mind? Happy to see that my article on the link between perceived marginalization and democratic orientations is now out in @ejprjournal.bsky.social 🧵👇 Read the article here: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

European Journal of Political Research

@ejprjournal.bsky.social

11 June

Taking a stand ✋️🧍 These authors 🧵 use survey data across 9 countries to assess the downstreams consequences of #AffectivePolarization & intervene to successfully reduce participants #AffectivePolarization in 6 of the 9, improving interpersonal relations and social norms buff.ly/tHRWa65

cambridge.orgThe (alleged) consequences of affective polarization: A survey experiment in nine democracies | European Journal of Political Research | Cambridge CoreThe (alleged) consequences of affective polarization: A survey experiment in nine democracies

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

Ruth Dassonneville

@rdassonneville.bsky.social

19 May

🚨 I'm recruiting a PhD student for a new project on Parties' social group ownership, based in the @vd-researchgroup.bsky.social research group at KU Leuven! Deadline for applying is 26 June, estimated starting date is 1 Oct 2026. All info is here 👉 www.kuleuven.be/personeel/jo... Share widely!

kuleuven.be1 doctoraatspositie in kiesgedrag1 PhD position to research how parties build connections with social groups

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

Arndt Leininger

@aleininger.bsky.social

18 May

🚨 8 days left to apply! @svenhegewald.bsky.social and I a are happy to answer questions of prospective applicants.

Arndt Leininger@aleininger.bsky.social

📢 We're hiring for my project RESPOL on residential mobility & electoral realignment 📍 University of Hamburg 📅 4y, 75% FTE 🔍 pol behavior, comp politics, regional inequalities 📊 quant, administrative & survey data Please share with talented MA students! 🔗 www.uni-hamburg.de/en/stellenan...

uni-hamburg.deJob advertisement

In our project, we study how recognition – understood as the degree to which individuals feel valued and respected by society and political elites – shapes political attitudes and democratic support. We argue that a lack of recognition can push individuals toward anti-establishment politics.

We aim to study how recognition is linked to democratic attachment and examine how elite communication affects perceived recognition and its link to democratic support. The team will include @ackermannk.bsky.social, me and two PhD students. The second position will be advertised soon!

shorturl.atInstitut Catholique de Lille recrute : Assistant Doctorant en Science Politique (F/H) CDD à undefinedPostulez à l'offre Assistant Doctorant en Science Politique (F/H) sur Taleez pour rejoindre Institut Catholique de Lille

The position starts September 1st 2026. If you are interested in questions of democratic support, social status and recognition and survey research, and have a (soon to be) completed master’s degree in political science, please have a look at the job ad: shorturl.at/oi1jp

If you have any questions or if you are unsure whether you fulfil the requirements, please do not hesitate to reach out to me! The deadline for applications is the 15th May.

Our project includes money for surveys, experiments, and most importantly two PhD positions (one at @espol-lab.bsky.social in Lille and one at the University of Siegen).

Multidisciplinary Center for Infectious Diseases (MCID)

That means, I am looking for a PhD student to join ESPOL-LAB at the Catholic University of Lille. The position is fully funded for 3 years and includes the possibility to conduct joint and independent research within the research project. Teaching responsibility is limited to one course per year.

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

@mcid-unibe.bsky.social

22 Apr

Great to see the first insights from @bereadycohort.bsky.social in a new study on pandemic preparedness research. tinyurl.com/773mrv2e #PandemicPreparedness #PublicHealth #CohortStudies #BEready #MCIDresearch #Epidemiology #Vaccination #AffectivePolarisation

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

ESPOL-Lab

@espol-lab.bsky.social

25 Mar

Workshop on “Subnational #elections 🗳️ in times of national #crisis in France 🇫🇷 and beyond 🌐” on 21 May 2026 📅 Deadline reminder: 30 March 2026 noon to submit a paper!

ESPOL-Lab@espol-lab.bsky.social

📣 Call for Papers ESPOL will host a workshop on “Subnational #elections 🗳️ in times of national #crisis in France 🇫🇷 and beyond 🌐” on 21 May 2026 and is issuing a call for papers in French or English. Details 👉 tinyurl.com/subnationale... Deadline 📅: abstracts (400 words) before 30 March 2026, noon

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

European Journal of Political Research

@ejprjournal.bsky.social

19 Feb

65.1🦋 Resentment and democracy under strain ✊ @mfilsinger.bsky.social & Steffen Wamsler of @ecpr-ead.bsky.social show how #SGRD shapes not only radical political support, but also citizens’ commitment to democracy 🏛️ drawing on survey data 📊 across six European countries

buff.lyDemocracy and disadvantage: How subjective group relative deprivation undermines democratic support | European Journal of Political Research | Cambridge CoreDemocracy and disadvantage: How subjective group relative deprivation undermines democratic support - Volume 65 Issue 1

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

Multidisciplinary Center for Infectious Diseases (MCID)

@mcid-unibe.bsky.social

5 Feb

New research funded by the MCID explores how political and affective polarisation shaped COVID-19 health behaviours. To read the full paper 👉 tinyurl.com/mtm7vpvy Or read more about the project 👉 tinyurl.com/3wvfptjb

Maximilian Filsinger reposted

European Journal of Political Research

@ejprjournal.bsky.social

14 Oct 2025

🆕 Democratic disaffection and resentment ✊ Using survey data 📊 from 6 European countries 🇪🇺 @mfilsinger.bsky.social & Steffen Wamsler examine how #SGRD, already linked to radical political support, relates to general support for democracy 🏛️ #OA 📖

tinyurl.comDemocracy and disadvantage: How subjective group relative deprivation undermines democratic support | European Journal of Political Research | Cambridge CoreDemocracy and disadvantage: How subjective group relative deprivation undermines democratic support

Steffen Wamsler and I have a new paper in @ejprjournal.bsky.social ! We show that citizens who perceive their in-group to be disadvantaged express lower support for democracy and higher openness towards authoritarian alternatives! tinyurl.com/y78hj253 @espol-lab.bsky.social @lifbi.bsky.social

Perceptions of disadvantage may erode the attitudinal core of liberal democracy. This makes it easier for authoritarian politicians to undermine democratic institutions and norms. Addressing SGRD has crucial implications for the stability and health of democracy.

This paper benefited from so many great colleagues that commented, criticized and encouraged us, including @freitagmarkus.bsky.social, @alinazumbrunn.bsky.social , @rdassonneville.bsky.social, @rlachat.bsky.social, @dieterstiers.bsky.social, @dafnoukos.bsky.social , @twoeffray.bsky.social ...

Our analyses offer a nuanced but not optimistic picture. While SGRD does not undermine citizens' preference for democracy as the most preferable regime, it increases their openness to autocratic alternatives. If steadfast democrats are those that reject autocracy, this is not good news!

Our findings are based on survey and panel data from six European countries that are considered stable democracies. Thus, our study has crucial implication! Perceptions of disadvantage matter! It is not only objective circumstances that undermine citizens support for democracy!

In our paper, we argue that subjective group relative deprivation (SGRD) undermines support for democracy. SGRD fuels disaffection with and resentment against the prevailing democratic system as it is unable to fulfil its fundamental pledges. SGRD makes people question the legitimacy of democracy.

Furthermore, autocratic alternatives are particularly attractive to individuals suffering from SGRD as these alternatives offer confrontational intergroup relations and performance-driven legitimacy as coping strategies to overcome perceived disadvantages. They seem more attractive than democracy.

tinyurl.comPerceived Exclusionary Disadvantages and Populist Attitudes: Evidence from Comparative and Longitudinal Survey Data in Six European Countries - Maximilian Filsinger, 2023Recent ethnographic research has argued that subjective impressions of disadvantage are important to explain support for radical populist parties. Yet, the ques...

We depart from previous research that shows subjective disadvantages to be a driver of radical voting and exclusionary attitudes. Among many other great scholars, both Steffen (tinyurl.com/26nexz2s) and I (tinyurl.com/2s3jv494) had contributed to this line of research.

Yet, we always wondered whether the effects of relative deprivation also undermine the attitudinal basis of democracy: diffuse support for democracy. If that is the case, relative deprivation does not only strengthen anti-democratic actors, but also democracy's foundation.