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News Release 08-158
Some Political Views May be Related to Physiology
New study reports physiological responses to disturbing images and sounds consistent with strong political beliefs
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John Hibbing, professor of political science at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, said recent research results show that people who react more strongly to bumps in the night, spiders on a human body or the sight of a shell-shocked victim are more likely to support public policies that emphasize protecting society over preserving individual privacy.
Credit: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
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John Hibbing, an NSF-funded researcher at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, shows the process for testing a person's physiological response to disturbing audio and visual imagery. By monitoring skin for electrical conductivity, which indicates emotion, arousal and attention, and measuring how hard the eye blinks in response to a sudden, jarring noise, the researchers were able to quantify physiological response. The results indicate that knowing a person's physiological response to disturbing stimuli is a predictor of his or her political views on "protective policies" such as defense spending and immigration. Economic policies were not included in the study and Hibbing stressed predictions would not be 100 percent accurate because other factors, such as environment and life experience also influence political views. The researchers plan to expand the scope of their study to people with weak or indifferent political views.
Credit: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
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People who react more strongly to bumps in the night, spiders on a human body or the sight of a shell-shocked victim are more likely to support public policies that emphasize protecting society over preserving individual privacy. That's the conclusion of a recent NSF-funded study by researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Their research results appear in the Sept.19 issue of Science magazine. In this podcast, John Hibbing, professor of political science, discusses the research technique and what predictions can and cannot be made as a result of a person's physiological responses to disturbing sounds and images.
Credit: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
The researchers' findings are published in the Sept. 19, 2008, issue of Science magazine.
Credit: Copyright AAAS 2008
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