Journal of Electoral Studies

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Home Issues Backissues Volume 31, No.1 Responding to Political Crisis during Campaigns: A Classification of Political Crisis Situations

Responding to Political Crisis during Campaigns: A Classification of Political Crisis Situations

Hui-Chung Ya and Rui-Xiang Wang
2008 / 11
Volume 15, No.2

pp.67-90
10.6612/tjes.2008.15.02.67-90
Paper

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to construct a classification of political crisis situations that candidates face and to discuss the situation-response relationship by exploring candidates' probable response strategies with respect to every type of situations of political crises during campaigns. Data is collected through 24 individual cases which present nine candidates subject to public accusations and suspicions in Taiwan's local political elections during 2005-2006. Content analysis and factor analysis are both used to analyze the data based on two variables: electorates' degree of antipathy to the crisis events and the degree of evidence disclosure. It is found that in ”high antipathy and high disclosure of evidence”, ”attack accuser” is candidates' most probable response; in ”high antipathy and low disclosure of evidence”, ”denial” is candidates' most probable choose; in ”middle antipathy and high disclosure of evidence”, candidates tend to ”reduce offensiveness of crisis”.

Keywords

political crisis situations in campaigns

response strategies to crisis

image repairing

crisis communication