Monday, September 10, 2007

Liberals Just Think Differently From Conservatives

And now we have the evidence to prove it.

Exploring the neurobiology of politics, scientists have found that liberals tolerate ambiguity and conflict better than conservatives because of how their brains work.

In a simple experiment reported today in the journal Nature Neuroscience, scientists at New York University and UCLA show that political orientation is related to differences in how the brain processes information.

Previous psychological studies have found that conservatives tend to be more structured and persistent in their judgments whereas liberals are more open to new experiences. The latest study found those traits are not confined to political situations but also influence everyday decisions.

The results show "there are two cognitive styles -- a liberal style and a conservative style," said UCLA neurologist Dr. Marco Iacoboni, who was not connected to the latest research.

The scientists were quick to point out that this doesn't mean one way of thinking is "better" than the other...although the moonbats are already trying to say it does.

I'm not surprised at the results. Liberals think being "open-minded" is a good thing (and it can be in certain circumstances) and shun the idea that tradition and history should control various institutional responses to events (for example, the atrocious arguments made by Jeromy Brown concerning gay marriage). What I would be most interested in is what a study shows about your brain as you move from being liberal to conservative, as many of us do with age. Does that mean our brains change over time? Or does it merely point out that experience alters one's opinions about various issues?