Individualism and Political Personalism

Individualization and political personalization reflect shifts in contemporary societies toward a greater emphasis on individual actors and their roles and a lesser emphasis on collectives and groupings. The former pertains to individuals' autonomy and life choices, along with a diminished emphasis on collective norms and values, while the latter denotes a situation where the political weight of the individual actor is greater than that of the political group (i.e., party). The prevailing assumption is that cultural shifts from collectivism towards individualism underpin the personalization of political institutions, the media, and political behavior because individuals view politics through an individualistic prism. This suggests that, counterintuitively, cultural changes toward individualism diminish the role of political institutions and parties, which then raises concerns about the concentration of power and populism, thus potentially weakening democratic processes. However, our study suggests that the relationship between Individualization and political personalization is more complex than previously perceived. This paper examines the relationship between individualism and political personalism through an analysis of available data at the country level. Our findings do not support the conventional individualism-personalization hypothesis; instead, they highlight the need for a more nuanced approach to these relationships.