How emotion affects political views?

Empathy and political views are related, scientists have found

We are able to recognize emotions, motivation and intentions of other people. And their desires and the desires of others. This ability to manage emotions in order the decisions of any task is called . Recently, however, scientists have found that emotional intelligence is directly linked to the development of prejudices and a tendency to a certain political ideology. According to the results of a new study, people who have assessment of emotional intelligence were lower, are more likely to adhere to radical views and prone to prejudice.

Political views and the human brain

Psychologists have long been interested in how personality and cognitive ability are related to political preferences and a tendency to prejudice.

Previous studies have shown that people with lower cognitive abilities tend to stick to the right and biased views. However, only a small number of studies focused on the relationship of emotional intelligence and political orientation.

People with low cognitive abilities are more prejudiced than others.

On the relationship of brain and political preference, scientists know relatively recently. It is believed that political views is a complex manifestation of brain activity. So, neuroscientists have proven that the brains of liberals and conservatives work differently. Using magnetic resonance scanning experts studied brain activity in the process of making people decisions that are directly related to risk. The results showed that there is a difference in those parts of the brain that are more active in those who consider themselves conservatives or liberals.

In 2017, the study was conducted, the results of which scientists were able to reproduce today. In the study, researchers tested more than 1,000 Belgian students. The scientists wanted to measure their emotional and cognitive abilities, as well as to know their political preferences. The results showed that students with lower assessments of cognitive and emotional tests are more likely to have higher scores on tests measuring right authoritarianism and orientation to social dominance.

It turns Out that the people in the study scored fewer points on the basis of emotional intelligence are more likely to adhere to the right and slightly racist views.

However, the study found only a link, but a causal relationship could not be detected. In other words why this is so probably nobody knows.

as evidenced by well-developed empathy?

A New study published in the journal Emotion, complements the previously obtained results. People with poor emotional abilities as well as people with a deficit of these abilities — more likely to hold right-wing views and prone to prejudice.

In the new study, the researchers assessed the political views and emotional abilities 983 Belgian students. To measure emotional abilities, the participants underwent three tests: the situational test of emotional understanding and situational test of emotion management and the Geneva test of emotion recognition.

the Ability to understand others makes you less prone to bias.

In the second part of the study measured emotional and cognitive abilities of the subjects. The results showed that participants who received lower scores on emotional abilities, and especially their management have received higher marks to bent to the right authoritarianism and social dominance.

As a rule, people with a tendency to the right authoritarianism willingly submit to the authorities and show hostility toward people outside their groups. And those who are oriented to social dominance tend to don't like elitism, and prefer inequality within and between social groups.

Why do people misunderstand each other?

According to study author Alain van Gil, a Professor at the University of Ghent (Belgium), the results of these studies indicate that people who support strong leaders and which are important for their credibility, do not care about inequality — but because they lie at the heart of most political ideologies. Such people have a lower emotionalabilities.

Moreover, people who scored lower scores on cognitive and emotional tests, were more likely to agree with such statements as "the white race is superior to all other races". However, scientists say that not to discredit any ideology on the basis of the obtained results. Only in the distant future we will be able to look back on our time, and then we might be able to understand what the ideology was the best. Do not forget that people with developed cognitive and emotional abilities, too, can make the wrong decisions.

And yet, the authors of the study suggest that people with lower emotional intelligence are less sympathetic and less sensitive to the perception of emotions in others and from their own point of view. But the reasons why this happens, scientists have yet to find out.