The Impact of Political Party Identification, Psychological Inflexibility on Political Incivility during 2021 General Elections in Kampala, Uganda

Abstract

This essay explored the relationship between political party identification, psychological inflexibility, and political incivility among youths in Kampala during 2021 general elections in Uganda. It involved descriptive and correlational survey design to find out the relationship between the variables and data was collected from 168 respondents. A relationship between the three variables was established using Pearson correlation and findings showed that political party identification and psychological inflexibility were not significantly related (r = 0.096, p > 0.05). Furthermore, the findings showed that political party identification and political incivility were not significantly related (r =0.148, p >0.05). However, findings showed that psychological inflexibility and political incivility were significantly related (r =0.176, p< 0.05). The study concluded, that there are complex relationships between political party identification, psychological inflexibility, and political incivility among the youths in Kampala, Uganda. The findings suggest that further research should be conducted to determine if these findings can be applied to other regions in Uganda. Additionally, the study recommends the development and implementation of psycho-educational interventions to address political incivility. These interventions should aim to promote psychological flexibility, reduce intolerance, encourage open-mindedness, and teach skills for managing difficult emotions.