What do you see when you first look at this picture?
Some of you see a young lady dressed up in her finery.
Others of you see an older woman bundled up with her chin to her chest.
Why do our brains see the exact same picture – identical lines, shapes and shadings – and come up with dramatically different results, at least initially?
I’ve always wondered about this phenomenon, especially when it comes to evaluating political candidates.
How is that I can watch the same debate, hear identical campaign ads, read the same news articles, and walk away with totally different impressions than someone right beside me? These dissimilar reactions are even more surprising to me when I sense the other person and I are alike in so many other ways. Many times I have been surprised to learn friends’ political affiliations; I would have guessed the other way.
So, I was intrigued as I listened to a radio news story a few weeks ago which offered up an explanation. A study out of the University of Nebraska found that people whose bodies respond strongly to threatening images and sounds (their startle reflex) had more conservative views. The researchers hypothesized that some people are more hard-wired to sense fear, and those concerns may lead them to favor more conservative stances (e.g., higher military spending, anti-immigration, pro-death penalty). You can read a Washington Post write-up of the study, Startle Response Linked to Politics.
Now this study was not particularly strong (only 46 participants), nor has it been overwhelmingly received (scientists have criticized it left and right). But, when I learned about the findings, I had an intuitive hit: “They just might be on to something.”
I also liked how one of the researchers, University of Nebraska’s John Hibbing, framed the issue, according to the NPR article Could Political Views Be Driven By Biology?
He doesn’t think this study means that conservatives are essentially scaredy-cats.
“I think it’s just as easy to say that liberals are naive, and they don’t get it. They don’t understand it’s a dangerous world,” Hibbing says.
He says there is no “normal” response in this experiment.
“That’s why I hope the upshot of this might be a little bit more tolerance for people on the opposite side,” he says, since people might be more understanding if they knew their political opponents might simply be experiencing the world differently.”
Why do you think we look at the world through such different political lenses? What shapes our political perceptions?
Given all the heated rhetoric in this homestretch of the presidential race, it might serve us well to spend a few minutes contemplating the world view from the other side of the aisle.
10-9-2008 12:45:54
My sister in law is so gung ho concerning Obama and so were those at his rally in Dayton, Ohio today. I view things differently, but we remain family.
I have noticed in Ohio that Republicans tend to be more silent in their views as opposed to those getting out the vote on Obama. This may not be enough in the country to avoid the landslide that the media says will happen with Obama in the presidency, but I wonder if they can ever accept a defeat if it were to go against them.
I try to be open each election year, but find the Democratic party to be very threatening in their approach to winning. That turns me off more than the ads.
BTW Elaine, I put a link to your site on my blog.
Hope to get to know all of you better.
And if you vote for Obama, that surely is your right!
Take care,
Marilyn
10-9-2008 12:48:26
http://www.2homes2lives.blogspot.com
Stop by sometime. Usually post once or twice a month.
10-9-2008 13:31:26
Elaine, I thought that study was fascinating. I think in the big picture, we need people who are more sensitive AND people more open to new things. I think as a country we’re served well when those two personalities are in balance. But in my opinion, our country has been dominated for 30 years by people from one extreme. I’m tired of extreme viewpoints and people screaming on TV or radio. When I started voting — a long time ago
— people of different parties acted more civil to each other. I started seeing a stratification of viewpoints in the late 70s, and it’s gotten more polarized ever since, in my opinion.
I think labels are such a disservice. I think if we could just look at political candidates for how they vote and what they do (not what they say), our country would be better off. For instance, I hold a lot of beliefs in common with Teddy Roosevelt. I think if TR were alive today, he would vote for Obama. I have been known to vote for people of both major political parties. But I feel that now, we’ve got to restore our civil liberties, re-establish some fiscal discipline and feed the economy from the bottom up. I’m concerned about issues like health-care, college for our kids, and money for retirement. And I think America’s 30-year experiment with trickle-down economics, deregulation and outsourcing has gotten us to this point. I want a change, so that’s why I’m voting for Obama.
10-10-2008 10:05:38
My political views are hot-wired to how I see the world and how I care about people. I have a bumper sticker that gives a snapshot of how I feel: Everyone does better when everyone does better. I watch the news about the failing economy and the endless war, and I do worry about the future of this country if Barack Obama does not win the election. Democrats were handed a defeat by the courts 8 years ago and do not want to drop their guard for a minute this year. We can’t afford to.
10-10-2008 12:41:08
Here’s a follow-up to my earlier post. I’m attaching a link to an article about moderate Republicans or former Republicans who are appalled at the McCain/Palin campaign. I voted for Bill Milliken. He’s a good man and he’s urged moderation in the GOP for several years now.
http://www.mlive.com/elections/index.ssf/2008/10/former_governor_milliken_backs.html
10-12-2008 15:36:50
Like Sharon’s, my political views are “wired” to the way I view the world and what I believe is best for my country as a whole. Personally, I’ve noticed a huge and disturbing change in the GOP — not the same party it was when I was growing up and my parents were both fiscal Republicans. I used to vote Republican, too, but now that the religious right has practically taken over the party, I can’t abide by it. I believe Thomas Jefferson was right about the need for separation between church and state. You can be a person of faith, but you can’t force others to share that faith. (Didn’t we come to America to escape religious persecution?)
Interestingly, my mother voted for Bush but has swung way over to the left. She admires Senator Obama and is upset by so many changes in the GOP. Like me, she’s voting with her head.