Surviving a polarized Thanksgiving

Issue 35: Navigating a polarized Thanksgiving dinner; the paradox of individualism; and the Research Round Up

Are your Thanksgiving gatherings feeling more politically tense than they used to? If so, you are not alone.

A few years ago, researchers analyzed ~25 billion smartphone location data pings from ~10 million Americans and found that that politically diverse Thanksgiving dinners were “30 to 50 minutes shorter” than ones with politically aligned guests.

These politically-fraught dinners were 12–19 percent shorter than dinners with likeminded folks, which lasted an average of 257 minutes. So if you find yourself making excuses to leave the party before dessert is served, you are not alone.

Like most findings, this reflects just one time point and one way of looking at the issue. But an analysis of several studies throughout the Trump presidency found a similar pattern of data (although they estimated that politically-diverse dinners might only be 24 minutes shorter on average, giving you just enough time for a few bites of pumpkin or pecan pie (take your pick!) before you grab your coat).

It…