2015-01-08 11:15:42
Political tendencies depend on our biology
I have mentioned on several occasions that today science deals with all aspects of life, even those that once seemed safe from its inexorable, no matter how reasonable, clutches. One of these topics, of universal interest and almost as old as Humanity itself, is that of political ideology. Where are you from? Why are some people on the left and others on the right?
In recent years, numerous scientific studies have shown that political tendencies have a strong biological basis. Although it may be shocking, these studies indicate that they are largely heritable, that is, due, once again, to the inevitable genes. However, the biological and genetic basis of political ideologies should not be surprising if we think that they include vital dimensions as important as sex (contraceptives, abortion…), family, education, personal autonomy and, in general, way in which one organizes oneself to live one’s life. These aspects are fundamental for our social adaptation and have been for our survival as a species.
Furthermore, there is also no doubt that political tendencies are similar among members of the same family, which already points to a dependence on genes. In fact, about three years ago, a pioneering study already identified genes associated with various political tendencies, that is, those causing the “left-wing disorder” or the “right-wing syndrome” or even the “disease of the center”, since that we are talking about syndromes, diseases and disorders when we talk about politics, at least lately.
The previous studies invited a group of researchers from several universities in the US and the UK to consider the idea of whether neural responses to certain stimuli (for example, unpleasant or pleasant images) would be somehow associated with the Politic ideology. To check if their idea was true, the researchers carried out a curious experiment, which they published in the journal Current Biology, in which they are able to determine, using functional magnetic resonance imaging, the brain activity of 83 healthy volunteers while they observe images of different emotional content. The emotions evoked by images and their intensity are undoubtedly due more to biology than culture, since no one needs to learn to feel fear, pleasure or disgust. For this reason, the researchers said, if political tendencies have a biological basis, they should be related to certain characteristics of the emotional response evoked in the brain by the images.
biased images
Researchers use images without political content, included in a standard set accepted by the scientific community. Some of these images are capable of consistently evoking emotions such as anguish, fear or pleasure, while others do not evoke any emotion.
After observing the images connected to the scanner that recorded their brain activity, the volunteers filled out a questionnaire in which they classified the images according to the subjective sensations they had produced. The participants also filled out questionnaires to determine their political affinity, their sensitivity to unpleasant stimuli, and their state of anxiety. The questionnaire to determine political affiliation is also standard and capable of placing on a scale from 0 (very left-wing) to 1 (very right-wing), each person’s political tendency.
Based on the score obtained, the participants were classified into the “left-wing,” “right-wing,” or “center-centered” group. Interestingly, each of these groups included a third of the participants: political tendencies were widely distributed. None of the groups showed significant differences when classifying the images and the emotions they evoked. Therefore, on a subjective level, the images seemed to exert similar effects regardless of the political tendency.
Once this is determined, the researchers use an artificial intelligence program to analyze the brain activity data and find differences, if any, or any patterns that could be predicted, just by examining the brain image in response to some type of image, the political tendency of the owner of the brain. This is when the surprise arises. The researchers thus identify several brain regions that are preferentially activated in people with a conservative political tendency, and in response to the observation of unpleasant images, but not other types. These regions were different from those that were activated in response to the same images in progressive-leaning people. This technology has also been used to distinguish healthy people from those who present symptoms of autism, which indicates that it may be valid to determine how the same stimulus generates different neural responses according to different personality tendencies or mental health status.
While we continue to believe that our political ideas are purely rational and that those who think otherwise are wrong, it turns out that emotional responses to external stimuli, determined largely by genes, possibly have the last word on what we think, although we are not aware of its influence. Perhaps political debate is not so much about defending rational ideas as about evoking the correct emotions in the interlocutor… Perhaps political professionals already know this without the need for so much study.
NEW WORK BY JORGE LABORDA.
It can be purchased here:
Chained circumstances. Ed. Lulu
Other works by Jorge Laborda
One Moon, one civilization. Why the Moon tells us that we are alone in the Universe
One Moon one civilization why the Moon tells us we are alone in the universe
The intelligence funnel and other essays
#Cienciaes.com #Politics #Brain #Activity