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The concept of correct voting, which refers to a vote that is the same one that would have been made under conditions of full information, has been used to evaluate citizens' voting decisions in various settings. Most studies either focus on determining individual and situational predictors of correct voting or determining the correctness of voting via heuristics. Since heuristics can lead to better decision outcomes than systematic processes, the goal of this study was to analyze how different modes of decision-making strategies, as well as individual and situational characteristics, contribute to correct voting. To answer this question, an experiment was conducted in Croatia, a previously unstudied context for correct voting, in which participants gathered information on four parties in a mock election campaign. Results showed that higher political motivation and usage of compensatory decision-making strategies had a positive impact on the probability of casting a correct vote. However, direct effect of cognitive load was found for participants with low levels of political motivation, for which an increase in cognitive load resulted in 25% less probability of voting correctly., Točno glasovanje definira se kao glasovanje koje je identično onome danom u uvjetima potpune informiranosti. Taj koncept je korišten za evaluaciju glasačkih odluka u nizu konteksta. Većina istraživanja usmjerava se na utvrđivanje individualnih i situacijskih prediktora točnog glasovanja ili na evaluaciju točnosti glasovanja putem mentalnih heuristika. S obzirom da heuristike mogu rezultirati kvalitetnijim odlukama od sustavnog procesa odlučivanja, cilj ovog istraživanja jest analizirati kako različiti procesi donošenja odluka, te različite individualne i situacijske karakteristike, doprinose točnom glasovanju. Kako bi se odgovorilo na taj cilj, proveden je eksperiment u hrvatskom kontekstu u kojem se do sada nije istraživalo točno glasovanje. Sudionici u eksperimentu prikupljali su informacije o četiri stranke tijekom lažne kampanje za parlamentarne izbore i glasovali. Rezultati pokazuju kako su veća politička motivacija i korištenje kompenzacijskih strategija odlučivanja imali pozitivni utjecaj na vjerojatnost točnog glasovanja. Međutim, kognitivno opterećenje imalo je utjecaja na sudionike s niskom motivacijom za politiku – za njih je povećanje kognitivnog opterećenja smanjilo vjerojatnost točnog glasovanja za 25%.

Individual differences in political ideology are related to voters’ preference for political candidates, and are rooted in the way people perceive their social environment. Conservatives view the world as more dangerous and competitive place compared to liberals, and tend to choose more dominant leader. Research show that voice pitch serves as a cue for dominance: deeper voices are perceived as more dominant. Therefore it is hypothesized that conservative voters would prefer political candidates with lowerpitched voices. In this study we test if ideology moderates relation between politician’s voice pitch and election outcome using highly ecologically valid design. We have used data on national level ideology collected during World Value Survey, and extracted voice pitch of political candidates of 69 elections held across the world. . Regression analysis revealed a strong preference for presidential candidates with lower-pitched voices in more conservative countries, while similar pattern was not observed for parliamentary elections.

The aim of this research was to find out how refugees and migrants were narratively constructed and represented in selected Croatian daily newspapers during the migrant crisis in 2015 and 2016. We were interested to determine whether such people were addressed in the articles as “refugees” or “migrants”, whether they were commonly portrayed as victims or as a threat, and if Croatia and the neighbouring countries were represented as a refugee- friendly or refugee-hostile country. We present the results of quantitative content analysis and narrative analysis of articles on refugees and migrants published in three of Croatia’s most read daily newspapers (Jutarnji list, Večernji list and 24 sata) in different periods during the crisis.

Previous studies have shown that voters rely on sexually dimorphic traits that signal masculinity and dominance when they choose political leaders. For example, voters exert strong preferences for candidates with lower-pitched voices because these candidates are perceived as stronger and more competent. Moreover, experimental studies demonstrate that conservative voters, more than liberals, prefer political candidates with traits that signal dominance, probably because conservatives are more likely to perceive the world as a threatening place and to be more attentive to dangerous and threatening contexts. In light of these findings, this study investigates whether country-level ideology influences the relationship between candidate voice pitch and electoral outcomes of real elections. Specifically, we collected voice pitch data for presidential and prime minister candidates, aggregate national ideology for the countries in which the candidates were nominated, and measures of electoral outcomes for 69 elections held across the world. In line with previous studies, we found that candidates with lower-pitched voices received more votes and had greater likelihood of winning the elections. Furthermore, regression analysis revealed an interaction between candidate voice pitch, national ideology and election type (presidential orparliamentary). That is, having a lower-pitched voice was a particularly valuable asset for presidential candidates in conservative and right-leaning countries (in comparison to presidential candidates in liberal and left- leaning countries and parliamentary elections). We discuss the practical implications of these findings, and how they relate to existing research on candidates’ voices, voting preferences and democratic elections in general.

This papers deals with comparative analysis of survey data on global and local conspiracy theories related to the war trauma from post- Yugoslav wars and trauma of social change in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia.

The innovation of this paper lies in the fact that for the first time young people's perceptions about radicalism were studied. Encouraged with the unclear and confusing use of the term radicalisation, the general lack of empirical studies on the topic of radicalisation (Borum, 2011 ; Dalgaard-Nielsen, 2010), and relying on the existing literature which suggests that young people have been particularly prone to radicalisation (Özerdem & Podder, 2011 ; Costanza, 2015), we conducted empirical research to reveal what young people in Croatia understand under the term “radical” and what they perceive as elementary characteristics of radical individuals. One of the incentives for this research was to see what young people understand as being radical and what is mainstream from their perspective. To get these answers we conducted six focus groups among young people between 15 and 30 from five Croatian cities and towns. The research confirmed that the radicalisation process is highly context dependent, and it pointed to the presence of a corrosive apathy among Croatian youth. Furthermore, the findings suggested that both mainstream and radical young people were viewed equally negative. In addition, describing a radical person, young people in Croatia confirmed that radicalisation has many different faces and that it can also be non-violent. Therefore, this paper could serve as a starting point for researchers particularly interested in non- violent radicalisation in non-Western contexts.

Most studies on populism focus either on citizens’ or politicians’/parties’ populist attitudes. Contrary to that, in this study we wanted to combine these two strands of research with the goal of examining the impact of various individual (demand side) on the probability of voting for a (non)populist party in a mock election (supply side). Using previous populist speeches and interviews during political campaigns in Croatia, we identified 14 salient political issues. By using expert evaluations of these data, we formed four positions (statements) for each mock party on each of issues – a combination of left-right, and non-populist-populist. Thus, the only difference between two (left or right) parties was whether they used a populist discourse or not. Participants filled out a questionnaire for individual characteristics, and two weeks later participated in a mock election. To elicit different cognitive load, participants were faced with two types of campaigns – low cognitive load was elicited in a static board situation in which they were presented with all information, had unlimited time do gather them and decide for which party to vote. High cognitive load was elicited with a dynamic campaign in which participants could not access all campaign information and had a limited time to inform themselves before voting. The results show that participants with lower political knowledge had a higher probability of voting for a populist party. Furthermore, higher populist attitudes (as a disposition) increase the probability of casting a populist vote, but this effect is only present when participants are under high cognitive load. In other words, for populist voting to appear, populist attitudes need to be activated as a dispositional tendency in a specific situation of constrained reasoning.

During the war in former Yugoslavia, city of Dubrovnik was shelled in 1991. Even though these experiences were traumatic for all those involved, the goal of this paper was to explore if these events resulted in a cultural trauma, i.e. a breakage of cultural patterns and of collective identity. We expected that the process of trauma-claiming, which is central to cultural trauma, was amplified because of the role, both physical and symbolic, that the Old Town played for the collective identity of Dubrovnik. In the paper, we give an outline of the war in Dubrovnik. To assess the way that the war in Dubrovnik affected the collective identity, as well as to find out the relation between personal and collective historical narratives, we conducted interviews with 13 informants. We observed that all the phases of trauma-claiming were successful, or in other words, that there indeed was a cultural trauma in Dubrovnik as a consequence of the shelling. Additionally, we were able not only to observe expressions of cultural trauma experienced by our informants, but also to trace further changes and developments spanning to the present day.

According to rational choice theory, a voting decision is based on information about candidates and the political positions they hold. However, a large body of research showed that voters do not know enough about politics and that they rely on cues that signal quality of potential candidates. For example, they are more prone to vote for a candidate who shows signals of dominance, social influence, and masculinity. These characteristics were important in our evolutionary history and are related to testosterone levels. Vocal characteristics are also related to testosterone levels ; those individuals with higher testosterone levels have a deeper voice. Experimental laboratory studies showed that voice pitch has an impact on voting decisions. In order to verify and expand these results we checked whether vocal characteristics of actual presidential candidates are related to election outcomes. Using recordings of presidential debates we show that those candidates who have a deeper voice, greater pitch variability, higher minimal and lower maximal frequency have a higher probability of winning the election. These results offer an external validity of previous laboratory studies and are interpreted within the framework of evolutionary political psychology.

Birači se prilikom glasovanja za predsjednika države oslanjaju na različite znakove kvalitete potencijalnih kandidata. Dosadašnja istraživanja pokazuju da birači daju prednost kandidatima koji odaju znakove dominacije, društvenog utjecaja i muževnosti. Ove karakteristike pozitivno su povezane s razinama testosterona u organizmu. Testosteron može također utjecati na glas kandidata putem receptora za steroidne hormone koji se nalaze na glasnicama. Zbog toga osobe s višim razinama testosterona imaju dublji glas, odnosno glas niže frekvencije. Iz navedenog slijedi da bi frekvencija glasa predsjedničkih kandidata mogla biti povezana s ishodom izbora. Ova pretpostavka je potvrđena u nizu eksperimentalnih istraživanja, koja pokazuju da su ljudi skloniji glasati za kandidate s dubljim glasom. Međutim, nedostaju istraživanja odnosa značajki glasa stvarnih kandidata i ishoda proteklih izbora. Stoga su u ovom istraživanju prikupljene snimke debata predsjedničkih kandidata na proteklim izborima iz 24 različite države. Akustička analiza glasa predsjedničkih kandidata pokazuje da su veću vjerojatnost pobjede na izborima imali kandidati s dubljim glasom, odnosno nižom frekvencijom glasa, većim varijabilitetom te frekvencije, te višom minimalnom i nižom maksimalnom frekvencijom. Ovi rezultati upućuju na ekološku valjanost eksperimentalnih nalaza o povezanosti glasa i vjerojatnosti pobjede na političkim izborima, te su interpretirani u okviru evolucijske političke psihologije.

In the last thirty years uneasiness among scholars and political actors has been growing larger as more citizens demonstrate cynical attitudes. These citizens feel that politicians are immoral and incompetent, have less faith in democracy, and show lower levels of political participation. However, Peter Sloterdijk points out that the dominant view of cynicism is simplified. He divides cynical reason into two separate ways of thinking: cynicism and kynicism. The main difference between them is in individual’s reaction to the cleavage between public ideological mask and individual’s idea of social reality. Cynics persist in keeping the ideological mask on and have an “enlightened false consciousness”, while kynics highlight this cleavage, oppose the dominant ideology and point out misuses of political power. This research was conducted with the goal of creating cynicism and kynicism scales. Their validity was tested for two samples – a smaller sample of students and later on the representative sample of Croatian citizens (N=1002). Also, connection of cynical and kynical thought with an array of relevant political attitudes and political behaviour was tested. Results indicate that cynicism and kynicism are relatively separated and coherent types of political thought. Kynicism is primarily related to low trust in political institutions, but also to lower support of democracy. Specific combinations of these two types of thought have a highly negative potential for abandoning the democratic way of thinking. This work offers an empirical confirmation for Sloterdijk’s model, and confirms usefulness of it in understanding political thought and behaviour of Croatian citizens.