The Geography of Discontent Revisited: Decoupling Attitudinal Clustering and Affective Intensification in Urban Britain

Abstract

This paper investigates drivers of anti-diversity sentiment among the UK’s white majority. Using Latent Class Analysis on 2023 survey data (N = 2,535), we map five distinct clusters, including a large ‘Anxious Nationalist’ bloc driven by racialised status threat and a ‘Pro-Securitisation’ minority. Multilevel modelling decouples national formations from local influences. Our results suggest city deprivation does not predict membership, tentatively challenging the view that urban context ‘sorts’ individuals but significantly amplifies emotional intensity. Distinguishing formation from intensification refines the ‘geography of discontent’ thesis, arguing that while place may not determine who we are, it significantly shapes how loudly we express it.