A culture of abuse certainly accounts for some component of that 37%. But I think the author overstates this at the expense of the backfire effect. While I don't particularly enjoy wading into the waters on behalf of Roy Moore supporters, I do feel compelled from my comfy armchair to distinguish their rationalizations as tribalism. It just seems improbable that a culture of abuse accounts for the entirety/majority of the increased support for the disgraceful senate candidate that a well-established psychological phenomenon also explains. That said. It's fucking gross.These numbers cannot be attributed to pure political tribalism. It is quite simply a culture of abuse.
The backfire effect occurs when, in the face of contradictory evidence, established beliefs do not change but actually get stronger.