Description: HistoryPerception
We at More in Common are curious about these ‘history wars’— and through an extensive and in-depth exploration of American public opinion, we discovered they are often being fought between imaginary enemies.
To better understand this conflict, we conducted a year-long research project asking thousands of Americans their views of American history and national identity and what they understood to be the views of their fellow Americans.
One of our most notable findings is that both Democrats and Republicans alike grossly overestimate whether members of the opposing party hold extreme views. We call this a ‘Perception Gap’ — the gap between what we imagine an opposing group believes and what that group actually believes.