Narratives, Rhetoric, and the Psychology of Political Communication in Times of Uncertainty

Political reality does not simply exist; it is constructed, narrated, and contested through communication. In times of uncertainty — war, economic insecurity, democratic erosion, rapid technological change — the stories politicians tell and the rhetorical techniques they deploy become especially consequential, offering citizens interpretive frames for events that would otherwise remain ambiguous and threatening. This panel examines how political messages are crafted and why they work. We encourage papers on rhetorical techniques in contemporary politics, from metaphor, framing, and emotional appeals to strategic ambiguity and repetition; political narratives in times of uncertainty, including crisis narratives, narratives of decline and renewal, and the framing of enemies and threats; populist narratives and their distinctive discursive features — people versus elite, betrayal, nostalgia, and redemption; the psychological mechanisms through which political messages persuade, mobilize, or polarize audiences, including identity resonance, emotional arousal, and motivated reasoning.