Socjotechnika a zmiany preferencji wyborczych na rzecz PiS w latach 2001-2005
The role of social engineering in politics in voters' preference change - case of Law and Justice (PiS) in the years 2001-2005

Summary/Abstract: The article examines the use of sociotechnical methods in shaping electoral preferences in Poland at the beginning of the twenty-first century, focusing on the communication strategies of Law and Justice (PiS) between 2001 and 2005. The aim of the study is to identify and interpret the sociotechnical techniques employed by PiS during the 2005 parliamentary campaign, with particular emphasis on actions addressed to the electorate of the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD). The analysis is based on qualitative research of archival materials collected in the Archive of Political Parties of the Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences, as well as on an analysis of archived online content. The study employs content analysis tools and theoretical categories developed in the literature on sociotechnics and political communication. The findings indicate that the party adapted elements of a left-wing set of beliefs by emphasizing egalitarianism, social solidarity, and criticism of inequality and exclusion, while simultaneously delegitimizing the SLD as a post-communist elite. The strategies applied included, among others, the canalization of ideals, the intensification of fear, and the instrumental use of collective memory. Moreover, PiS effectively made use of elements of the "post-communist divide" and, at the same time, by creating a new dichotomy between "solidary Poland" and "liberal Poland," reinforced its electorate's identity through social polarization.

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