Here’s the latest stab at a neurological explanation of political attitudes: a study that associates conservatism with larger amygdalas, and liberalism with larger anterior cingulate gyruses.
We read:
Based on what is known about the functions of those two brain regions, the structural differences are consistent with reports showing a greater ability of liberals to cope with conflicting information and a greater ability of conservatives to recognize a threat, the researchers say.
…There had also been many prior psychological reports showing that conservatives are more sensitive to threat or anxiety in the face of uncertainty, while liberals tend to be more open to new experiences.
Of course reports like this must generally be consumed cum grano salis, but perhaps there’s something to it: conservatives, wary to keep civilization safely on the rails, are more likely to notice when policymakers set a course that is likely to lead to a train-wreck — while liberals, their heads blithely filled with “conflicting information” and hungry for “new experiences”, like nothing better than to yank the throttle open and start shoveling coal.
Story here.
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Wasn’t actress Janeane Garofalo an infamous purveyor of the “conservatives have an overdeveloped limbic system” meme?
Ah — here we are.
So I guess all the conservatives need is an operation. Heh.
Well, both the amygdala and the anterior cingulate gyrus are part of the limbic system.
But more to the point, who pays any attention to Janeane Garafolo?
That depends. Does she have nice tits?
I’m of two minds about this “right brain, left brain” stuff.
There are two types of people in the world: those who look at things in binary terms and those who don’t.
Yes, Rick, I’m having second thoughts about it too.