3/9/17
Conservatism: humanity’s default mode
OR
The Zombie Apocalypse
revisited
Last year, when I started this blog, I surveyed 100
liberals, moderates, and conservatives and asked them who was more likely to
survive a Zombie Apocalypse, liberals or conservatives. The overwhelming conclusion was the
conservatives, mostly because they were better armed.
 |
| How liberals see conservatives |
Since then, my reading suggests that it’s not only the
weapons. Research shows that people under threat shift towards the political
right. And that makes sense because conservatism is a more efficient and
protective philosophy. Not only that,
but, “… the conservative
ideology, and especially one of its major facets—centered on a strong military,
tough law enforcement, resistance to immigration, widespread availability of
guns—would seem well tailored for an underlying, threat-oriented biology.” Note the word “biology”. We’ll come back to
that.
Consider these “binding values” that conservatives hold
dear:
Loyalty
Authority
Sanctity
Liberals will undoubtably gag at these (I know I do), but in a threat situation, those
more likely to survive will do so because:
- everyone is with us
- everyone will follow orders
- everyone is one of “us”.
 |
| How conservatives see liberals |
If you’re a fan of The Walking Dead, you know what I mean.
With the zombies at the door, liberals might well be taking a vote on whether
to run or fight or even if it’s fair to kill zombies when it’s not their fault. The conservatives will have already picked a
leader (or he’ll have picked himself.
Note the gender of the pronoun…) who will tell everyone what to do. And
they’ll do it.
So why do many of us hold these binding values? Since much
of our political leaning seems to be inherited (probably through differences in
brain structure) then it could be Darwinian – these values helped ensure
the survival of the species. Those who held these notions were more likely to
survive and pass them on to their offspring. Evolution at work.
(Irony here: Evolution created the kind of religious conservatives who don't believe in evolution. Delicious, right?)
Where does that leave liberals?
Wildly outlying opinion:
I think liberalism may be a mutation, resulting from an increase in the
parts of the brain that mirror the emotions of others. Liberals value empathy more. Liberals suffer more
when they see others suffer. And liberals are all about fairness. Remember last year when the liberals were so
concerned about protecting bathroom rights, when it turns out they should have been more focused
on jobs? (I know, I know – there’s a lot
more to unpack from the 2016 campaign than bathrooms. Just making a point here.)
Liberals are also better at handling ambiguous situations than conservatives. That may have come just in time because in a world with nuclear codes, it's all about thinking things through.
Finally, being a liberal is more work. People who think
carefully about the issues before deciding which way to go are more likely to
be liberals. People who don’t think carefully almost always shift towards
conservative.
Because it’s easier.
Because it’s our default.
Fire away.
Interesting!! No firing from this quarter...I think you have a good hypothesis going here! Of course...I'm a Liberal.
ReplyDeleteSomething here for conservatives to like, too.
DeleteI am a conservative and I have a couple of quibbles with this.
ReplyDeleteFirst we are not against immigration..we are against illegal immigration. There is a difference but for some reason liberals like to leave out that word "illegal" which then broad brushes conservatives as hating all immigrants which is not true.
I would also disagree with the notion that being conservative is easier and we don't think carefully. Au contraire, from my perspective it seems that liberals come from a place of an emotional response to situations where conservatives lean towards common sense and thinking things through. I do look at both sides of an issue before I come to a conclusion and more than not it is a conclusion based on what makes sense to me.
Since the election the Liberals have been going full tilt on protesting things which might happen or could happen with a Trump Presidency. I think Conservatives are more matter of fact..they take things as they come and don't borrow trouble or worry about what might happen. We might not have liked President Obama or his administration but we were willing to give him a chance.
I think you need to talk to more Conservatives to see what makes them tick and not make such broad judgments based on what..I don't know.
I do agree that political leanings and values are inherited although I do think most people as they mature and experience life can change from the root values they were brought up with.
Thank you for your thoughtful comments. They require a thoughtful response. Your note about liberals mixing conservative stands on legal and illegal immigration is valid for some liberals. I've looked at the 2016 Republican platform, and it recognizes the contribution of legal immigrants while focusing on the problems of illegal immigrants.
DeleteOn the other hand, the current administration looks to reduce the number of refugee immigrants from all countries, not the six Muslim countries named in the latest executive order.
About the notion as to whether or not Conservatism is "easier". I've looked at a lot of cognitive research, and what they say is, It depends. We humans like to think we're rational beings, at least ever since the Enlightenment. However, brain studies that look at what happens in the head when people think about political matters suggests that this isn't actually the case. When asked to consider issues of politics, the emotional centers light up first, then the reasoning centers. It means we "lean towards" a viewpoint because of emotion, and then often dredge up logic to support that.
At the same time, when we do think about things, we tend to do it one of two ways: Quick/easy and long/thoughtful. We use quick/easy for things like deciding which type of apple to buy in the grocery, or which shampoo. We use the long/thoughtful strategy for buying things like a car or a house, where we'll make a list of pros and cons and shop around.
Some of us make our political decisions the same way. "It was good enough for grandpa, so it's good enough for me." Others try to bring in the long/thoughtful approach that looks at the problems facing the country and try to come up with reasonable solutions.
Cognitive scientists can force people to do the quick/easy method by not allowing them time to think. (Or, in one bizarre experiment, getting them drunk.) When that happens, people tend towards the conservative. Not because that's what drunks do but, I hypothesize, because it's easier. It's a groove we more naturally fit into. Because it has survival value.
If people are encouraged to do the long/thoughtful strategy, then some of them come down conservative and some liberal, though somewhat more are liberal.
What this boils down to is that some conservatives (and somewhat fewer liberals) reach their conclusions in a habitual, quick/easy way. And some conservatives and some liberals put in the energy to think things through. I bet if you talk to your conservative friends, you'll find both types. I certainly see both types in my liberal friends.
I have references for this stuff if you want to read psychological studies. Let me know. However, you might find Richard Haidt’s summaries more accessible. If you have the time, the video interview at the bottom is pretty interesting, too.
http://moralfoundations.org