U.S. politics have long been marked by disagreement and even rancor. But 2016 feels worse than usual. NPR’s Hidden Brain podcast offers one explanation why, from deep in our psychological frameworks. NPR Read more »
Donald Trump and the rise of white identity in politics
Many political commentators credit Donald Trump’s rise to white voters’ antipathy toward racial and ethnic minorities. However, we believe this focus on racial resentment obscures another important aspect of racial thinking. In a study of white Americans’ attitudes and candidate preferences, we found that Trump’s success reflects the rise of […] Read more »
If my candidate is behind, the poll must be biased
… There’s evidence that political partisans, like sports fans, discount or dismiss information that challenges their favored candidates or ideas, and even accept conspiracy theories that support their views. In a survey, we found evidence that ordinary citizens are more likely to believe in the accuracy of polls that show […] Read more »
Hillary Clinton’s ‘Angry’ Face
… Polls indicate that Mrs. Clinton is seen as a more credible candidate than Mr. Trump, yet less trustworthy and likable. This discrepancy is surely rooted, in part, in Mrs. Clinton’s violations of female stereotypes. When she acts “presidential,” she is seen as harsh and cold. In contrast, when Mr. […] Read more »
Why Facts Don’t Unify Us
According to the Pew Research Center, the nation is more polarized than at any time in recent history. While some of the issues dividing us boil down to ideology and preference, there is at least one on which hard science should have a strong say — climate change. But do […] Read more »
Politics and personality: most of what you read is malarkey
… For many political psychologists, it seems abundantly clear that traits and politics go together. There’s evidence that many aspects of personality develop quite early in life and have a genetic component, but we don’t become actively political until we are older. So it’s sensible to assume that the one […] Read more »