JOE BIDEN: “WHO WE ARE”
ANALYSIS BY CHARLIE KAISER AND BRITT BLOMSO
Terror management theory claims that humans are aware of our inevitable death, and to manage our anxiety and intense fear around this consciousness, we invest in creating cultures, belief systems, values, and worldviews which shape a reality for us that make us feel protected from this terror. This means that things like religion, education, fame, sports (yes, even sports), and politics are ways in which we manage our death anxiety. Although this solution can be helpful, there are also times when this fear is manipulated to influence our actions and aid an agenda that is not our own. Members of political campaigns are more than strategic when making advertisements promoting their candidate and political agendas. Most commonly used are four terror management theory themes meant to evoke fear and action among viewers and voters. According to a meta-analysis on this theory, mortality salience plays a role in shaping political attitudes, as people are more likely to cling to their preexisting worldviews when reminded of their death anxiety, even on an unconscious level (Burke et al., 2013). The following analysis breaks down an example of this manipulation through a political advertisement from Joe Biden.
In the Joe Biden “Who We Are” ad, the two most prevalent themes of terror management theory include manipulation through Threats to Values and through Death Reminders. Biden’s ad begins with uplifting music which alludes to the idea of Holy Longing—a yearn for human connection and transcendence—but, as the ad continues, we see riots in the street after viewing an image of Donald Trump speaking. This directly relates to Manipulation Through Death Reminders, as our unconscious fear of death is triggered by the violent images of street rioting. Biden also claims that “If we give Donald Trump eight years in the presidency, he will forever and fundamentally change the character of this nation,” which appeals to the terror management theme of manipulation through Threats to our Values. The message in this part of the ad is clear—our current nation is unsafe, made more dangerous by the current political leadership (Donald Trump) and, if the “wrong” choice is made (in this case voting for Donald Trump), then the chances of individual death increase greatly. Biden’s ad continues to evoke death anxieties by saying, “Our democracy, everything that has ever made America, America is at stake. We are in a battle for the soul of this nation, and we have to remember who we are.” Creating and adhering to values and culture are one major way people manage their terror and statements like these show a clear threat to America’s values and reality. Images of communities uniting are starkly juxtaposed with images of Trump speaking and the violence in street riots, allude to the idea that the American soul (a symbol of this worldview) will be destroyed by President Trump and therefore he is a threat to our nation—and hence our cultural worldview. Positive images like those of people in community and Biden hugging diverse groups of people send the message that Biden can protect the values if only individuals would make the “right” choice and vote for him.
References
Burke, B. L., Kosloff, S., & Landau, M. J. (2013). Death Goes to the Polls: A Meta-Analysis of Mortality Salience Effects on Political Attitudes. Political Psychology, 34, 183-200. doi: 10.1111/pops.12005
Charlie Kaiser will graduate from Fort Lewis College in 2021 and wants to be a High School teacher who specializes in teaching life skills to students in topics such as fiscal responsibility, sexual education, healthy relationships, emotional intelligence and empathy, resiliency, and decision-making and problem-solving. She wants to create her own curriculum for the course she teaches after recognizing the gap in life skills knowledge that members of the youth community have access. Charlie wants to pursue her master’s degree in Social Work from the University of California at Berkley, and work with victims of domestic violence at a shelter in Phoenix, Arizona. She also wants to coach women’s soccer at the High School where she teaches and put an emphasis on team strength, mental health, and resiliency within her players.
Britt Blomso will graduate from Fort Lewis College in 2021 and wants to be a leader in Developmental and Leadership Psychology where she will work diligently to create a standardized protocol for college athletics and mental health with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Britt’s initial interests were in sports performance psychology and how to motivate athletes to compete at the highest level. Through her journey as a college athlete, she began to notice and experience the gap between physical and mental health, and how one was much more important to athletic programs. Britt seeks to pursue her master’s degree at the University of Oslo in Norway where she wants to work with the Women’s National Soccer Team to implement mental health protocols that include mandated rest days and required counseling sessions.