Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Annals of Neuropolitics


Sidebar

Update: Over at Cognitive Daily Dave Munger cautions against hyping these results by pointing out that the authors of the study make claims that are far more modest.

On the neurobiological basis of political beliefs:

"In the past, people thought that…[political leanings were]…all environmentally influenced, a combination of biological dispositions as well as cultural shaping," says David Amodio, an assistant professor of psychology at New York University. However, a new study, led by Amodio, indicates that political bent "is not just a choice people have, but it seems to be linked to fundamental differences in the way people process information." [...]

"They are more sensitive to the need for change and more sensitive to the need to change their behavior," Amodio says about the politically left-leaning subjects.

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These findings have had such an impact on Krish that he has "decided to be more sympathetic to conservatives and other right wingers" :

I will learn to live with [conservatives and other right wingers] like how we learn to live with an incurable disease.

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