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XP: Editorial, Nervous people 'are likely to be right wing'
Interesting!!! I'm not sure how I agree, myself. I would consider myself a somehwat nervous person in that I'm rather high-strung and easily startled. If I saw a picture of a spider on someone's face, I'm certain I would flip the eff out. 
But I am the furthest thing from "right wing"
Nervous people 'are likely to be right wing'
STEVE CONNOR
People who are easily startled by loud bangs or gruesome pictures are more likely to vote for right-wing policies compared with calmer people who take a more liberal approach to life, according to a psychological study of political beliefs.
The findings support the idea that personality type influences political attitude, which could explain why voting differences appear to be entrenched. "Although political views have been thought to arise largely from individuals' experiences, recent research suggests a possible biological basis. We present evidence that variations in political attitudes correlate with psychological traits," said John Hibbing of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The study, published in the journal Science, investigated 46 Americans with strong opinions spanning the political spectrum who were tested for their physiological responses to a range of visually threatening pictures and loud noises.
"Subjects with measurably lower physical sensitivities to sudden noises and threatening images were more likely to support foreign aid, liberal immigration policies, pacifism and gun control," Hibbing said.
"Whereas individuals displaying measurably higher physiological reactions to those same stimuli were more likely to favor defense spending, capital punishment, patriotism and the Iraq war," he said. Physiological responses that were monitored included the electrical conductivity of the skin -- measuring sweat production -- and the amount of eye blinking after a loud noise. Such responses are not under conscious control and are considered good indicators of a person's overall nervous disposition.
They were shown three threatening images -- a large spider on a frightened face, a dazed individual covered in blood and an open wound filled with maggots -- interspersed with neutral images and three non-threatening images, such as a bowl of fruit and a happy child.
The scientists believe the findings support the belief that political attitudes reflect the way a person deals with potential threats.
"Consequently, our research provides one possible explanation for both the lack of malleability in the beliefs of individuals with strong political convictions and for the associated ubiquity of political conflict," they said.
Re: XP: Editorial, Nervous people 'are likely to be right wing'
Hmmmm....
I jump excessively at scary movies, I STILL can't stand to look at images of torture (even though I generally have to in my work), I get all teary-eyed and emotional over displays of human "goodness" or extreme depravity (yeah, I know, I'm a sap), and I'm still one of the most liberal people I know...
Yeah, yeah, I know. Anectdotal evidence = close to worthless...
Nervous here too and pretty liberal. Interesting theory, though.
I also think the opposite premise could be made: I imagine worse case scenerious (job loss, medical crisis, sudden dive into poverty, etc.) and value a gov't safety net to help, which aligns with my more liberal positions on certain gov't programs. Who knows?
Not nervous, but very liberal. DH is nervous and liberal.
One of my best friends is excessively nervous and also the most conservative person I know.
My brother is probably one of the most nervous people I know. Well, jumpy at least. He's very liberal, and I'm moderately conservative.
Although, I take a much more relaxed approach to life - very live and let live. And he's kind of more like bunny - very liberal but with strict stances on right and wrong.
Hmm, based on the responses, maybe it was a typo?
I am not a nervous person and am slightly conservative.