Abstract
Three waves of a national probability-based panel survey of U.S. adults are used to assess citizens’ perceptions of the 2024 debates. A new measure of debate-generated consonance–dissonance, consisting of a combination of predebate candidate support and candidate performance perceptions, is introduced. Experiential and instrumental attitudes toward the Harris–Trump debate, along with perceptions of debate exposure affecting vote likelihood, are the study’s dependent variables. Results show the dissonance generated by Biden’s June 27th debate performance having a sizable impact on perceptions of the importance of the Harris–Trump debate, and attitudes toward the Harris–Trump debate predict vote likelihood perceptions.
Authors
- R. Lance Holbert
- Huma Rasheed
- Joshua M. Scacco
