Use of Donald Trump’s Emotional Language as an Effective Communicative Strategy

Abstract

The main objective of this research is to determine the communicative effectiveness of Donald Trump by studying the emotions he employs in his speeches. To achieve this, the words (and their emotional relationship) from 185 direct quotes of the former American president published by The Wall Street Journal are analyzed. The analysis focuses on three pivotal moments of his political trajectory (2016-2021): when he won the elections in 2016, when he lost them in 2020, and the assault on the Capitol in 2021. By applying the GALC methodology (Scherer, 2005), it is possible to establish a relationship between his words and the emotions expressed in his speeches. These results have been compared with parameters that define an effective communicator, emphasizing the significance of emotions. Thus, Trump is a strong communicator who utilizes a higher number of positive emotions than negative ones in his public appearances, with most terms associated with feeling love.