… Scientists who study the psychology of storytelling and rhetoric say there are several factors that give climate change denialists an advantage in the political marketplace. Simplicity and smoothness of the message is a big part of it, said Eryn Newman, professor of psychology at the Australian National University. In […] Read more »
Our Culture of Contempt
… Millions of people organize their social lives and their news exposure along ideological lines to avoid people with opposing viewpoints. What’s our problem? A 2014 article in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on “motive attribution asymmetry” — the assumption that your ideology is based in love, […] Read more »
How politicians leverage our survival instincts to influence our votes
The term “tribalism” has become ubiquitous in discussions of modern-day political conflicts. It’s a useful metaphor because it’s grounded in historical fact. For most of our species’ history, humans lived in tribes, and there’s evidence that these groups sometimes battled for scarce resources. This ongoing struggle shaped our primitive brains, […] Read more »
Private Mossad for Hire: Inside a plot to influence American elections, starting with one small-town race
… Psy-Group was part of a new wave of private intelligence firms that recruited from the ranks of Israel’s secret services—self-described “private Mossads.” The most aggressive of these firms seemed willing to do just about anything for their clients. Psy-Group stood out from many of its rivals because it didn’t […] Read more »
The deep roots of the trust crisis
We all depend in our social, business, financial, and political affairs, on a shared currency of trust. But we have somehow devalued this currency and breaches of public trust have recently grown to epidemic proportions. Donald Trump, the President of the United States, is perhaps the most worrying example of […] Read more »
How to have productive disagreements about politics and religion
Psychology research suggests a new tool for your ‘disagreement toolbox.’ Dragon Images/Shutterstock.com Larisa Heiphetz, Columbia University In the current polarized climate, it’s easy to find yourself in the midst of a political disagreement that morphs into a religious argument. People’s religious affiliation predicts their stances on abortion, immigration and other […] Read more »