Political Psychology

Red Mind, Blue Mind: Are There Really Any Independents?

Wray Herbert | Posted 05.25.2012

Read More: Political Psychology, Democratic Party, Republican Party, Partisan Politics, Independents, Independent Voters, Political Identity, Political Judgments, Science News
Wray Herbert

How do Independents manage to rise above party politics while the rest of the electorate is divided by ideology? Well, perhaps they don't. New evidence suggests that the label "Independent" may imply more objectivity and purity than these Independents deserve.

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Shivering Liberals, Parched Conservatives

Wray Herbert | Posted 05.21.2012

Read More: Political Psychology, Empathy, Social Perception Visceral States, Embodied Cognition, Visceral Heuristic, Social Cognition, Judging Visceral States of Dissimilar Others, Visceral States Dissimilar Others, Science News
Wray Herbert

Nobody thinks, "Democrats drink more water," or, "Republicans wear warmer clothes." Knowing someone's politics should not affect how cold or thirsty we think they are -- yet these results suggest that it does.

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Conservatives vs. Liberals: More Than Politics

Thomas B. Edsall | Posted 04.09.2012

Read More: Political Psychology, John Boehner Obama, Romney Campaign, Republican Democrat Study, Romney Obama, Conservatives Liberals, Gop 2012, Conservative Liberal Psychology, Rick-Santorum-Missouri-Primary, Gallup-Conservative-Liberal, Books News
Thomas B. Edsall

The contest for power between Democrats and Republicans pits two antithetical value systems against each other; two conflicting concepts of freedom, liberty, fairness, right, and wrong; two mutually exclusive notions of the state, the individual, and the collective good.

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A Presidential Candidate Openly Taking Meds? Don't Bet On It

Kaitlin Bell Barnett | Posted 03.19.2012

Read More: Psychiatry, Political Psychology, Republican Primary, Michele Bachmann, Antidepressants, Republican Presidential Candidates, Abraham Lincoln, Campaign Rhetoric, Presidential Election, Newt Gingrich, Barry Goldwater, Medication, Prescription Meds, Politics News
Kaitlin Bell Barnett

Today, we know a lot more about mental illness than we did forty years ago. But given the grueling and brutal demands of modern campaigning, we would be extremely unlikely to embrace a presidential candidate who acknowledged taking drugs for a psychiatric condition.

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Going With Your Gut in the Voting Booth

Sam Sommers | Posted 03.12.2012

Read More: Elections 2012, Primary, Voters, Voting, GOP Candidates, Physical Attractiveness, Richard Nixon, Barack Obama, Face, Psychology, Power, Race, President, Commander-in-Chief, Gender, Political Psychology, Warmth, Cross-Cultural, Senate, George W. Bush, Height, Knee-Jerk, Joe Lieberman, Japan, Mature Face, Personality, Gut Feeling, The Tipping Point, Situations Matter, Exit Polls, Video, Politics News
Sam Sommers

No, this is not another blog post about the benefits (or costs) to being beautiful, though attractiveness certainly is a characteristic that can impact an election. Just ask Richard Nixon. But I'm not talking about physical attractiveness per se.

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Why Republicans Deny Science: The Quest for a Scientific Explanation

Chris Mooney | Posted 03.12.2012

Read More: Acceptance, Political Psychology, Conservatives, Liberals, Climate Deniers, Science and Politics, Climate Change, Psychology, Evolution, Differing Views, Science News
Chris Mooney

An increasing body of science suggests that we disagree about politics not for intellectual or philosophical reasons, but because we have fundamentally different ways of responding to the basic information presented to us by the world.

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At the Root of Hard-Hearted Politics

Judith Barr | Posted 12.04.2011

Read More: Individual and Global Mental Health, Politics, Political Psychology, Hard Hearted Politicians, Psychology of Politics, Abuse of Power, Abuse of Power in Politics, Emotions Behind Politics, Roots of Power Abuse, Politics News
Judith Barr

If we are going to resolve the closed-heartedness of our politics and our politicians, we need to find the root. And we need to really understand it so we can do something truly constructive with it and about it.

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Fareed Zakaria Says That U.S. Politics Will Get Nastier -- He's Right, But...

Judith Barr | Posted 10.31.2011

Read More: Political Slander, Politics, Abuse of Power in Political Campaigns, Nastiness in Political Campaigns, Political Mudslinging, Political Psychology, Politics News
Judith Barr

In one of his recent blog posts, CNN's Fareed Zakaria explored his belief that U.S. politics will get nastier. While I agree that politics in the U....

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Stephen Colbert Says 'Our Politicians Are Acting Like Children!'... And He's Right on the Mark.

Judith Barr | Posted 10.04.2011

Read More: Stephen Colbert, Politics, Political Psychology, Debt Ceiling, Debt Limit Deal, World News
Judith Barr

Stephen Colbert says 'our politicians are acting like children.' They don't only act... they think, feel, and are children inside themselves. We've...

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The Dark Side of the Political Personality Redux: Weiner, Schwarzenegger, and Edwards

Joel Weinberger | Posted 08.07.2011

Read More: Risk Taking, Narcissists, Anthony Weiner, Sexual Admiration, Breaking Political News, Psychology, Power, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Motivation, False Self, Politics, Politics News, Political Psychology, Hyprocrisy, Political Personality, John Edwards, Politics News
Joel Weinberger

Both Schwarzenegger and Weiner are attracted to risk or they would not have chosen the professions they did. Nor would they have engaged in the behaviors that are the subject of this column.

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How Your Sense Of Taste May Shape Your Moral Judgments

Wray Herbert | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Morality, Political Psychology, Embodied Cognition, Liberals, Conservative Brains, Liberal Minds, Conservative Minds, Liberal Psychology, Liberal Brains, Conservatives, Conservative Psychology, Flavor Morality, Flavor Moral Judgments, Flavor Judgments, Taste Judgment, Taste Morality, Taste Moral Judgments, Science, Healthy Living News
Wray Herbert

Conservative and liberal minds, it appears, may be fundamentally different psychologically, with conservatives much more sensitive to everyday triggers for physical disgust, and much more likely to commingle repulsion and moral judgment.

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Gaddafi's Mind: A Political Psychology Perspective

Tijana Milosevic | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bbc, Belgrade-Serbia, Jerrold Post, Media, Political Analysis, Libya, Libya News, Politics, Political Psychology, Muammar Gaddafi, Milosevic, American Imperialism, Moammar Gadhafi, ABC News, Slobodan Milosovic, Imperialism, John Brown, Libya Protests, US Diplomacy, World News
Tijana Milosevic

Gaddafi's statements are not a mere propaganda attempt and he honestly believes in what he is saying.

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Does A Physically Active Lifestyle Make Better Citizens?

Wray Herbert | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Citizenship, Fitness, Politics, Political Psychology, Inactive, Active, Political Science, Political Social Psychology, Political Studies, Political, Psychology Political Science, Healthy Living News
Wray Herbert

Is it possible that political engagement is just another form of movement and energy and physical activity? Could something as simple as an active lifestyle explain good and bad citizenship?

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Stressed Out by Private Health Insurance? A Clinical Diagnosis

Dr. Quentin Young | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Psychiatry, Political Psychology, Health Insurance Companies, Humor, Parody, Health Care Reform, Medicare for All, Single Payer Healthcare, Health Insurance, Single Payer, Health Care, Obama Health Care, Health Insurance Reform, Home News
Dr. Quentin Young

Dr. Carol Paris, a distinguished psychiatrist and a valued colleague in the campaign for single-payer national health insurance, an improved Medicare ...

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Are Policies That Serve the Common Good Un-American?

Douglas LaBier | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Greed, Politics, Political Psychology, Public Interest, Common Good, Tea Party, Un-American, Politics News
Douglas LaBier

One likely spin-off from the recent election will be a creeping redefinition of programs and policies that serve the common good as "un-American." So...

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The Psychology of Religion: Why Are Some of Us Attracted to It?

Roya R. Rad, MA, PsyD | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Islamophobia, Islam, Religion, Political Psychology, Islamic Radicalism, Psychology of Belief, Religious Right, Religion and Politics, Islamic Extremists, Psychology of Religion, Healthy Living News
Roya R. Rad, MA, PsyD

The psychology of religion is a much needed area of research and study. Why? And if we need it, why do some feel anxiously attached to it while others completely detach and avoid it?

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Have You Seen it? O'Donnell's Not a Witch...But the Commercial Doesn't Say That

David C. Wilson | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Political Psychology, Delaware Senate 2010, Christine O'donnell, Politics News
David C. Wilson

Christine O'Donnell's advisors are failing to understand the political psychology behind her candidacy. Rule #1 in political messaging is "do no harm," and her new commercial simply "does no help."

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Obama and the Gulf Disaster: The Psychology Behind the Criticisms

Douglas LaBier | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Unconscious, Leadership, Political Psychology, Obama, Father Figure, Gulf Disaster, Healthy Living News
Douglas LaBier

Many of the complaints about Obama's coolness are fueled by a wish for a strong "Big Daddy," a protective figure who will somehow fix things and make us safe again. That kind of wish is largely unconscious.

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John Edwards and the Dark Side of the Political Personality

Joel Weinberger | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Risk Taking, Politics, Sexual Admiration, Political Psychology, John Edwards Affair, Political Personality, John Edwards, Hypocrisy, Narcissism, Psychology, False Self, Power, Sex Tapes, Politics News
Joel Weinberger

How could a highly intelligent, sophisticated, man like John Edwards do and say such things? How could his judgment be so bad?

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Matt Osborne | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Barack Obama Smears, Right Wing Media, Antichrist, Political Psychology, World Net Daily, Michele Bachmann, Right Wing, Right-Wing Media, Psychology, Obama Antichrist, Psychological Projection, Jon Voight, Barack Obama, Obama Smears, Politics News
Matt Osborne

...

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Matt Osborne | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Shannyn Moore Alaska, Carrie Prejean, Prejean, Carrie Prejean Larry King, Shannyn Moore, Psychology, Michelle Malkin, Larry King LIve, Shannyn Moore Palin, Bachmann, Palin, Diva, Sarah Palin Diva, Michelle Bachmann, Miss California Gay Marriage, Celebrity-Meltdowns, Political Psychology, Carrie Prejean Sex Tape, Larry King, Michele Bachmann, Palin-Bachmann Syndrome, Sarah Palin, Miss California, Carrie-Prejean-Lawsuit, Celebrity, Miss California Carrie Prejean, Media News
Matt Osborne

I have decided to coin a phrase: Palin-Bachmann Syndrome™, defined as the psychological imbalance produced by a toxic mix of right-wing identity politics and diva training.

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The Normalizing of the Presidency

David D. Burstein | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: White House, Vice President, Political Commentary, Normalcy, President Obama, Psychology, Presidency, Barack Obama, Government, Politics, American Politics, Obama White House, Political Psychology, Obama Presidency, 2008 Presidential Race, Presidential Election, Politics News
David D. Burstein

Barack Obama might be one of the most normal presidents we have had in years. His connectedness to the real world is one of the things that made him appealing as a candidate.

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The Specter of the Counterculture II: The Cunning of Desire

James Block | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Counterculture, Political Psychology, Psychopolitics, Culture Wars, The Cultural Right, Politics News
James Block

In the decades since the 1960s counterculture, our hypocrisy has grown, not from some native evil, but from an unrelenting sense of confusion and entrapment.

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Who Needs the Brothers Grimm When We Have Teen Screen?

Anne Dunev | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Public Schools, School Shooting, Political Psychology, Mental Health, Children, Fairy-Tale, Psychiatric Drugs, Raising Children, Teen Suicide, Fairy Tale, Schools, Europe, Children's Health, New York, Psychopharmacology, Teenagers, Healthy Living News
Anne Dunev

The test: TeenScreen. Its mission: to test all American school children. The treatment? Psychotropic drugs that carry the all too real risks of suicide, suicidal ideation, homicide and homicidal ideation.

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Whatever it Takes

Diane Perlman | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Political Psychology, Trauma, Gaza, Conflict Resolution, Palestine, Barack Obama Palestinians, Israel-Palestine, Barack Obama Israel, Israeli Airstrikes, Gaza City, Gaza Strip, Israel Gaza Airstrikes, Israel, Israel Airstrikes, Israel Gaza, Israel Gaza Operation, Obama Israel, Politics News
Diane Perlman

President Obama, please lead us in healing wounds, compensating losses, and using principles of restorative justice rather than punitive approaches. Time doesn't heal wounds, people do.

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