Sociology Seminar 
Time: 10:00 am – 11:00 am
Date: 26th of March
Room : 3049

Juliette SAETRE (Toulouse School of Economics) – “From Frontlines to Home: The Impact of Returning Soldiers’ Testimonies on Public Opinion”

Abstract : 

A large body of social science research treats political attitudes as settled dispositions, formed early in life and reinforced through repeated interaction within homogeneous networks. On this account, meaningful attitudinal change is expected to be rare and gradual. This paper examines a striking breach of this expectation: a rapid shift in Norwegian public opinion toward Israel in the late 1970s, following decades of stable support. We argue that shifts in mass attitudes can emerge within communities when trusted in-group members return with firsthand information acquired through short-term mobility. Specifically, we focus on Norwegian UNIFIL peacekeepers returning from Lebanon after 1978 who, through their direct exposure to the conflict and continued embeddedness in local communities, transmitted accounts that challenged dominant narratives about Israel’s actions in the region. Combining cross-sectional data on public opinion with original survey data on former veterans, we leverage geographic variation in returnee intensity to show that counties with greater exposure to returnees experienced sharper declines in pro-Israel sentiment. The effect is strongest in areas where returnees remained socially embedded upon return and were politically aligned with their peers prior to deployment. The findings demonstrate how short-term mobility can drive changes in public opinion by enabling trusted in-group members to introduce new information into otherwise homogeneous environments.

Organizers:

Etienne OLLION (Pôle sociologie CREST)

Paola TUBARO (Pôle sociologie CREST)

Nicolas JULIA (Pôle sociologie CREST)

Patrick PRÄG (Pôle sociologie CREST)

Sponsors:
CREST