Leveraging Intellectual Humility to Fight Political Polarization – IHPOL

Political polarization is one of the most serious problems faced by Western societies. A burgeoning literature has shown that intellectual humility (IH) is associated with lowered political hostility in U.S. contexts, as well as less susceptibility to hostile news both at the level of belief and communication. Intellectual humility refers to the awareness of the limits of one’s knowledge and reasoning processes, and to an openness to others’ viewpoints. However, little research has explored whether this link generalizes across countries (e.g., in Europe, in Global South nations) and whether IH could be boosted through applied interventions to reduce political conflict in civil societies. To fill this lacuna, I want to present an ERC Starting grant by October 2026 aimed to advance our understanding of how IH could be leveraged to fight political polarisation. My ERC Starting grant project will explore how IH can help mitigate polarization through a large cross-cultural study (Axis 1), and several experimental interventions (Axes 2-3). My project will be based on an interdisciplinary approach building on experimental political science, social psychology and sociology. It will rely primarily on well-powered pre-registered quantitative studies, including data from Europe, Turkey and Thailand, and a simulation of social media. My research agenda has the potential of generating breakthrough findings on the mindsets that need to be cultivated to fight political conflict, which can empower educators and civil society actors across Europe.