The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #140148   Message #3219763
Posted By: Paul G.
07-Sep-11 - 06:33 PM
Thread Name: BS: And THIS is your brain on Politics!
Subject: RE: BS: And THIS is your brain on Politics!
Well I think that this bit from the article sums up the core issues pretty well, if they hold up to further scrutiny:

"So, when faced with an ambiguous situation, conservatives would tend to process the information initially with a strong emotional response. This would make them less likely to lean towards change, and more likely to prefer stability. Stability means more predictability, which means more expected outcomes, and less of a trigger for anxiety.
Liberals, though, tend toward unpredictability. They don't mind change, and in fact, they prefer it. They seek it out. This personality type would likely choose "change" over "stability" just because they tend to be more novelty-seeking by nature. The fact that they have a more prominent ACC helps them to deal with radically changing situations, still find the salient points, all without the emotion getting in the way. These individuals are the compartmentalizers, the logic-driven ones, while the conservatives are the ones driven by emotion and empathy."

Stability versus change. Stagnation verus evolution? Equipoise? Hmmmm... time to think about it.