History Of Victim Perceptions In The United States In The 20th And 21st Century: A Qualitative Content Analysis

Abstract

Claims to victimhood are a prominent feature of modern politics, especially within the United States (Cole, 2007). Critical theoretical perspectives (e.g., Nietzsche) suggest a moral inversion in which morality, which was once defined based on one’s association with traits like strength and power, transitioned to being more strongly associated with traits like suffering, humility, and martyrdom. However, no evidence can currently substantiate such a temporal argument. In order to examine whether modern victim politics can be partially traced to historical shifts, we examine whether there have been shifts in the rhetoric around victimhood within the United States. In order to assess this change, we investigated presidential inaugural speeches using a coding scheme designed for evaluating various themes related to victim perceptions. Using this coding scheme, developed during a previous analysis, this second round of coding was intended to test the robustness of the previously observed patterns and assess inter-rater reliability. We also evaluated differences in the frequency of codes as a function of presidential party affiliation. Significant positive correlations with the frequency of the mention of (positively evaluated) victim groups, an obligation to support those groups, and passage of time were observed in both rounds of coding.