Outsiders: a hard concept to operationalize in Political Science

Abstract

Introduction: While the electoral success of political outsiders, individuals who build their careers outside established political parties, is not a novel phenomenon, it has become increasingly prominent in Europe, the United States, and Latin America. How can we define and apply this concept in Political Science? Materials and methods: We conducted a high-sensitivity search across key academic databases, including Web of Science, Scopus, SciELO Brasil, Redalyc, and Google Scholar, ultimately selecting 30 documents for this scoping review. Through the analysis of these papers, we examined how the political outsider phenomenon has been addressed within the field of Political Science and the empirical foundations employed to define this concept. Findings: Our analysis found three key dimensions for identifying political outsiders: 1) political party, 2) discursive, and 3) professional. The first dimension assesses whether individuals have risen to prominence within or outside traditional political parties. The second dimension examines whether these leaders employ an anti-establishment rhetoric. The third dimension investigates whether they held prior positions in institutional politics before entering electoral contests. We found a recurring trend in most studies to categorize leaders and political parties as outsiders when they employ a discourse characterized by vehement criticism of the political class. Discussion: The research on political outsiders continues to grapple with enduring conceptual and methodological challenges. In addition to the varying emphases on specific variables across disciplines addressing this phenomenon (political science, political communication), difficulties in operationalizing the concept of outsiders persist within the existing literature. While various types of outsiders have been identified in presidential elections, applying this model to legislative positions requires a more refined concept and the incorporation of political careers in the analyses.