Science proves being a Republican or Democrat changes how the brain functions.

[dixiegrrrrl]

Feb. 13, 2013 — A team of political scientists and neuroscientists has shown that liberals and conservatives use different parts of the brain when they make risky decisions, and these regions can be used to predict which political party a person prefers. The new study suggests that while genetics or parental influence may play a significant role, being a Republican or Democrat changes how the brain functions.
Snip...
Democrats showed significantly greater activity in the left insula, a region associated with social and self-awareness. Meanwhile Republicans showed significantly greater activity in the right amygdala, a region involved in the body's fight-or-flight system. These results suggest that liberals and conservatives engage different cognitive processes when they think about risk.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130213173131.htm

[fascisthunter]

1. what about Blue Dog Corporate Moles?

Do they have much of a brain, because they act like the Borg or some weird cult that just takes orders with no conscience.

[mindwalker_i]

2. I think the cause is the bifferent brain structure makes one a Repub or Democrat

Not that being a repub or Democrat changes the brain. So people who grow up as assholes, who are afraid of things that aren't them and want to control those non-them things grow up to be Repubs.

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. yeah, I was wondering which end of the concept they were measuring.

Like you, it seems to me that the "personality" is pretty well formed by the time political preference is determined.

wonder if the brain changes when people convert from one POV to the other?

[robinlynne]

5. oh I know some Dem assholes too.....

Don't know any republicans, come to think of it.

[DreamGypsy]

4. Ohhh....K. I foresee a whole bunch of new state legislation...

... requiring that the brain not be involved in the authoring of any legislation.

And outlawing self-awareness...isn't that just mental masturbation???

Social-awareness?? I have some pyscho-social-campaign-contributors who tell me the body can just shut that down when presented with legislation.

[robinlynne]

6. too funny!

[snot]

7. Another quote from the same article:

"Republicans more strongly activate their right amygdala, associated with orienting attention to external cues. Democrats have higher activity in their left posterior insula, associated with perceptions of internal physiological states. This activation also borders the temporal-parietal junction, and therefore may reflect a difference in internal physiological drive as well as the perception of the internal state and drive of others."

I find this all interesting but confusing.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

8. This article, to me, was confusing. Did it really say that your brain changed?

I didn't get that out of it. They were looking at the brain today, after the person was already
a democrat or a republican, right? they are saying that they can look at a brain and say - this person is
a democrat or a republican. It is a predictor.

It is a better predictor than using genetics or parental influence.

But, to say, in a vacuum, people pick a party and their brain changes ?

To me, I had a world view long before I was even old enough to know anything about one party or another.

I will re-read it

[Laura PourMeADrink]

9. this is the part that they don't elaborate on

The new study suggests that while genetics or parental influence may play a significant role, being a Republican or Democrat changes how the brain functions

.

To make this statement true, it strikes me that you would have to look at the brain of a child or person prior to making a party affiliation decision and then look again after they had been affiliated with a party.

[dixiegrrrrl]

11. Your perception is correct, IMHO

I have read LOTS of articles about "studies" where it seems that cause and effect are completely reversed.

Seems to me they are saying they noticed different brain areas in members of the 2 parties.
But which caused the other is not proven.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

20. Like my husband always says. "Great minds think alike and so do we". If I wasn't

actually working today, I would pull up the real study

[whistler162]

10. It also proves how gullible some people are

who believe these "studies"!

[Katashi_itto]

12. Amygdala, if shows more activity or is enlarged, answers why Republicans are so ruled by fear

Thus, the amygdala becomes an important first response of mental life, a kind of brain and body sentinel facing every situation, every perception, considering only one question, the most primitive of all: “Can this thing or event cause hurt or pain?”

“When the amygdala function was removed in rats, they showed zero panic around cats. The instinct and memory of fear was completely erased!

Buddhist monks who do compassion meditation have been shown to modulate their amygdala, along with their temporoparietal junction and insula, during their practice. In an MRI study, more intensive insula activity was found in expert meditators than in novices. Increased activity in the amygdala following compassion-oriented meditation may contribute to social connectedness

[dixiegrrrrl]

13. Fear ...out of which arises the need to try to control.

Fear....the dynamic used by powers to control, also.

Fascinating.

[Katashi_itto]

14. Big question that arises is that are we dividing into two branches of human evolution?

Liberals, tend to look at team effort for their social dynamic..

Conservatives...hmmm Fear based decision making?

[The2ndWheel]

15. Civilization is the attempt to control

Don't blame fear and the resulting need for control on just Republicans. Democrats and Republicans are more similar than not, neither side is all about the collective or all about the individual, and are just afraid of different things.

[dixiegrrrrl]

16. I hear ya.

[LiberalFighter]

17. The reason why Republicans don't like to compromise?

They will either fight a proposal or run away and stick their head in a hole.

[Downtown Hound]

18. Hell, I'm just glad Repukes are using some part of the brain.

In time, maybe we can train them to do tricks.

[Puzzledtraveller]

19. I switched from R to D

I wonder what processes were involved.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

21. did you feel your brain jumping around?