The populism horseshoe: A venerable political theory helps make sense of modern political attitudes (John Sides – October 8, 2025, Good Authority)
Why would we expect populist attitudes to be more prevalent at the ideological extremes? First, let’s define populism. Tamaki and Jung, building on other work, define it as “a thin-centered ideology that divides society into two homogeneous and antagonistic groups – ‘the pure people’ and ‘the corrupt elite’ – and argues for politics to be an expression of the general will of the people.”
The ideological extremes are thus expected to be more populist because of certain cognitive tendencies. The far left and far right often share an “us vs. them” view of the world – even if they define “us” and “them” differently. Both groups also tend to oversimplify the world, and hold on to their simplified views with confidence. They are cognitively “rigid.” And they are particularly hostile toward those they view as opponents.
On top of that, the far left and far right are both “people-centered” in their way. They distrust authorities and “elites.” Thus, they valorize “ordinary people” as the only reliable and worthy decision-makers.