The emotional politics of problem definition: Israel’s judicial reform in a polarized public sphere

Abstract

To date, scholars have not devoted sufficient attention within the Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) to the emotional strategies employed by policy entrepreneurs—a gap this study addresses through an analysis of Israel’s judicial reform (January 2023‒December 2024). Using qualitative content analysis, AI-assisted thematic analysis, and a public survey, we examine statements made by two figures who spearheaded the reform: the minister of justice and the chair of the Knesset’s Constitution, Law and Justice Committee. Findings show that, contrary to our hypothesis, nearly all emotional appeals made by these figures triggered negative emotions among respondents, with no variation across political affiliations and no difference between reactions to the emotional content and to the political figures themselves. However, as expected, right-leaning individuals reported lower levels of negativity than those who identify with the center or the left. These findings suggest that fueling negative emotions served as the entrepreneurs’ primary mobilization strategy. In theoretical terms, the study contributes to the MSF by illustrating how emotional appeals may function as an endogenous mechanism within the problem stream. The findings are consistent with an interpretation that associates emotional framing with early stabilization of public perceptions of reform, potentially limiting subsequent opportunities for problem reframing as the policy process unfolds, and with observable agenda effects, including mass mobilization and a temporary government suspension of the reform. Moreover, initial emotional responses to the political figures are also consistent with an anchoring dynamic that may limit subsequent opportunities for reframing. By linking entrepreneurial emotional strategies to patterns of public emotional responses, the article highlights how emotions can accelerate problem recognition and reinforce contested interpretations, thereby influencing agenda dynamics at the stage of problem definition, prior to the coupling of problems, policies, and politics within the MSF conceptualization.