Brain structure differs in liberals, conservatives: study

Brain structure differs in liberals, conservatives: study

www.rawstory.com

Liberals have more gray matter in a part of the brain associated with understanding complexity, while the conservative brain is bigger in the section related to processing fear, said the study on Thursday in Current Biology.

"We found that greater liberalism was associated with increased gray matter volume in the anterior cingulate cortex, whereas greater conservatism was associated with increased volume of the right amygdala," the study said.

(visit the link for the full news article)

So Conservatives' brains focus on processing fear, while Liberals are into understanding complexity.

Seems that political orientation is all about coping with fear and uncertainty - and the differences are (or become) physical.

It remains unclear whether the structural differences cause the divergence in political views, or are the effect of them.

But the central issue in determining political views appears to revolve around fear and how it affects a person.

"Our findings are consistent with the proposal that political orientation is associated with psychological processes for managing fear and uncertainty," the study said.

Does this make sense to everyone?




EDIT TO ADD:

This study describes real physical differences - how we see the effect and importance of these differences is a matter of interpretation.

Personally - I think there's a good possibility that we have been subjected to neuromarketing for some time, for the purpose of altering our brain structure.

Our brains are extremely "plastic" and - now-routine manipulation can change the physical structure of our brains.

Here's a bit of background to explain my thinking:

* I wrote this in 2005: Neuro-Marketing: Straight to the Brain

The latest trends in advertising and marketing use neuroscience, and look beyond influencing our choices to directly affecting our brains at a physical level. Technology to monitor and alter brain waves dates back to the 1970's. Current research uses functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to map the brain's responses to stimuli. In 2001, "The Brighthouse Institute for Institute for Thought Sciences" gave birth to the BrightHouse Neurostrategies Group, the first neuromarketing company, based in Atlanta. Last week, neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield told the Institute of Direct Marketing how marketing can create new neuronal networks in the brain. Critics say using neuroscience to directly manipulate the brain is unethical and will be used to control our thinking, and voting too.

* Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity (also known as cortical remapping) refers to the ability of the brain to change as a result of one's experience, that the brain is 'plastic' and 'malleable'. The discovery of this feature of the brain is rather modern; the previous belief amongst scientists was that the brain does not change after the critical period of infancy.

www.rawstory.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

great prelim to election season....

do you fear complexity

here take this pill and just follow us.. we will make your life simple....

I think you apply this to some of the people on this site aswell..
I've seen some posts and threads and their brain definitely works different to normal human beings..

This keeps popping up like some assinine talking points spam email

www.abovetopsecret.com...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

Wow this is hard core bias right here.

So Liberals can understand complex things? What a crock. Most liberals I know don't understand much of anything.

And Republicans processing fear? That's a crock too! They don't process fear, they just let it process them.

Now, I have to say it. Anyone who takes this "study" seriously lacks development in the part of the brain that processes "Common Sense".

In reality, every human being's brain is different and grows or functions on totally different levels. Also the diets of each person involved WILL alter their brain chemistry uniquely for each individual.

Sorry but this study is garbage and I firmly believe simple questioning of the principals easily debunks the claims.

I mean cmon, it looks like a "Liberal" wrote the freaking study. Liberals can process complex ideas, meanwhile Conservatives are fearful all the time. It's pure BULL. BIAS 100%!

So, it would be "news" if Fox News published an article saying liberal brains were proven to be mush?

Test: If liberals are all soooo "complex", why are most of them "one and done" - they've got just one sound bite to repeat - as far as debating goes?

Example: Pssst! All you liberals, your leaders want to make sure you use the word "extreme" when talking to or about conservatives.

Raw Replay is nothing more than a one-sided liberal rant website.

Go to their homepage and browse their "news" to see what I mean.

Political baiting thread ...

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


It's a NEW study, and compares the size of these areas in Conservative/Liberal brains.

...The old studies just pointed in this direction.

Originally posted by Misterlondon
I think you apply this to some of the people on this site aswell..
I've seen some posts and threads and their brain definitely works different to normal human beings..

edit on 8/4/11 by Misterlondon because: (no reason given)

All human brains work the exact same. Only differences would be due to chemical differentiations or due to brain damage issues.

The brain is an organ, similar to the Heart or the Liver. It is essentially the same among all homo sapiens sapiens. It is encoded into our DNA chain the exact blue prints to the design and function of the brain. This is a fact.

If someone thinks differently than you, the obvious answer is that their brain (a computer processor) has been fed different information (data), and thus their conclusions will come out differently.

The human brain *(given that it's not damaged in any way), works perfectly all the time. The only problem is that the information fed into the computer is often times inaccurate and therefore the brain's conclusions will come out inaccurately due to false data base.

Please read the book written by Carl Sagan called "The Dragons of Eden"- Speculations on the Evolutions of Human Intelligence. Link to the Book !

Please please everyone read this ground breaking work as it explains this stuff in depth and gives excellent sources for these Facts.

Interesting, though I'm not certain how generalized a study on 90 individuals can be considered.But, it somehow makes sense.

Conservatives, with the definition of "wanting things to remain the way they are", are afraid of change.

"Conservatives..." are "more sensitive to disgust" and tend to "respond to threatening situations with more aggression than do liberals and are more sensitive to threatening facial expressions," the study said.

While Liberals, with the definition of "being open to change" can visualize the possible results of change, therefor are more open to accepting it.

"Thus, it is conceivable that individuals with a larger ACC have a higher capacity to tolerate uncertainty and conflicts, allowing them to accept more liberal views."

Let it be noted that I hesitated in contributing to this thread as I sense it will become a mine field of those still caught up in the "left vs. right" paradigm.
I see this study interesting as a study of personality traits, but do not necessarily see how it can viably be connected to one's political views. (Someone can be a fiscal conservative yet liberal on human rights for example.)

the Billmeister

So what about those of us who used to be hardcore left leaning liberals who began to understand economics?

My understanding of the complexity of economics is the reason I process the fear that one day soon these stupid liberal policies will bankrupt us all.

I think this "study" is complete BS.

reply to post by soficrow


Looks the same to me. Done by the same people in the same place with the same 90 participants.

It's just getting recycled.

Of course it doesnt help any that the "story" doesnt cite specific dates of the "research."

It's like somebody intentionally wants the articles to be ambiguous. Now why would anyone want that?

"Old" study:

Scientists have found that people with conservative views have brains with larger amygdalas, almond shaped areas in the centre of the brain often associated with anxiety and emotions.

"New" study:

"We found that greater liberalism was associated with increased gray matter volume in the anterior cingulate cortex, whereas greater conservatism was associated with increased volume of the right amygdala," the study said.

If it is a "new" study people need to get their money back.

Give me a few million $$$, and a few dozen idiots to study, and I will present you with a document that claims (as fact even though it's pure BS), that hermaphrodites are inferior to normal people, or vice versa.

Just fork over the $$$, and I'll provide you with all the BS studies you can dream of. Promise!

Hey don't blame me, fabricating exceptionally well documented bullcrap is expensive!

Originally posted by soficrow
reply to post by thisguyrighthere

 

It's a NEW study, and compares the size of these areas in Conservative/Liberal brains.

...The old studies just pointed in this direction.

And here is a report of THE EXACT SAME STUDY reported today on .... fair and balanced FOX NEWS!

source


You - or your source - conveniently forgot to quote this part:

Kanai did caution against taking these findings too far, as there are many uncertainties about the associations the researchers saw. For instance, which came first — the brain structures or the political views? One might also note that brain structure can be shaped over time by experience, and that some people are known to change their views over the course of a lifetime. Past research has shown, for instance, that counter to stereotype, as people age, they become more liberal.

This is so hilarious because (just 2 of many reasons):

* The study was also reported on Fox News. In the eyes of liberals doesn't that alone invalidate the study? If you say no, then every other liberal rant posted here against Fox News as a source is quite hypocritical.
* In another recent thread, a poster was putting down the Tea Party as being too geriatric - but your study says people get more liberal as they age. So, perhaps liberalism and alzheimers might be related? We need another study on that.



All proof that if liberals truly are so "complex", they might have thought this through and researched it a little more before posting the story.

Originally posted by muzzleflash
Wow this is hard core bias right here.

The bias would occur in interpreting the facts.

The facts are:

1. The participants self-reported their political leanings; and

2. The brain size in the 2 identified areas was different in the self-proclaimed Liberals and Conservatives:

Liberals have more gray matter in a part of the brain associated with understanding complexity, while the conservative brain is bigger in the section related to processing fear

Now, I have to say it. Anyone who takes this "study" seriously lacks development in the part of the brain that processes "Common Sense".

I have to say it - you can't dismiss physical evidence.

...You can however, question the interpretation.

Sorry but this study is garbage and I firmly believe simple questioning of the principals easily debunks the claims.

Which claims, specifically?

The anterior cingulate cortex is concerned with understanding complexity, and the right amygdala processes fear?

The subjects lied about their political leanings?

Size does not matter, despite generations of anecdotal evidence provided by legions of discerning women?

...Which claims?

"The only thing to fear is fear itself!" -Franklin D. Roosevelt

Just came to mind reading this thread.

I don't know if this is related, but most scientists are liberal.

Here is one link:
blogs.discovermagazine.com ...

There're many others. For example, among climate scientists, if I recall correctly, only a minority are republican or conservative in their views. 97% acknowledge AGW, while a majority of republicans question it. Ironically, the study I saw showed that democrats knew less about AGW than republicans! So it could be that some issues are purely political driven. Democrats might just assume that scientists are correct even though they have not researched it. Republicans, on the other hand, don't trust scientists and attempt to do their own research.

Hmm, a lot of people here seem to be afraid of this study...I wounder what that says about them?

Just kidding. There is no left and right, only right and wrong.

Though the study to me is a kind of propaganda, there is a genetic or brain functioning/wiring that tends to show differing levels of altruism and compassion or empathy, a more service to self or service to others, which to me, if, and only if, you were to remove this form of politics which is primarily a 2 headed monster, and had more of Norways type of representational system as opposed to Australias, Norways one gives more parties, and more grass roots people, and more women seats. Its one of the best systems for democracy in the world, in addition they have to get along better. In an ideal free world were people ran things with ever widening circles of grass roots councels and took turns, no leader at the top, it would be a lot like this, and they'd have to get along.

So there should be a concept instead, of taking the best principles of everything, for a humane wonderful, but progressive and solution oriented too, world.

However even in one family that all voted the same way, my huge family all voted NDP, social democracy advocates, and all the old school NDP, Tommy Douglas, not this new bought out one that is conservatives in grass roots clothing, we all had disagreements, I grew up listening to intensive arguments, and there was varying levels of intellect and empathy that seemed to carry out in other areas of peoples lives and to some extent this really is hard wired.

But in real life, due to actions and mindset/positivity, according to Russian studies we can change our genetics in real time, not just pass on changes, but alter them each year.

reply to post by soficrow


BTW, I just completed my own study by searching ATS with the words "soficrow" and "Fox News".

Results: Over 10 pages of hits with soficrow trashing Fox News.

But now all of the sudden they're OK because he was able to cherry pick some data from a study purporting to "prove" that liberals are somehow superior to conservatives.

Deny hypocrisy ...