Political DNA

As Election Day approaches, some of us may begin to question who they are going to vote for and why. After all, there are so many factors that can influence which candidate will make the better President… Or are there? An article in the Boston Globe by Eve LaPlante, “Born to Party,” suggests otherwise. Emerging research suggests that our political ideologies are actually shaped by our genetics, and scientists have discovered that “the brains of liberals and conservatives are physically and functionally distinctive, suggesting that people on either side of the ideological divide are actually wired differently.” Additionally, our views on everything from gun control to immigration are shaped by an “unconscious reaction to threat” rather than well-crafted, intelligent opinions. In the words of political scientist Kevin Smith, who co-authored the study, “[our p]olitical reactions are gut responses rather than a rational weighing of pros and cons” after which we make a logical decision. Instead, our political beliefs are dependant on biological instinct rather than reason. The study also found that conservatives are quicker to react to threats but more resistant to change, while liberals were generally slower to react to threats but more quickly accepted change. Additionally, the study claims that people have a 40% to 50% chance of inheriting their political ideologies.

So, what does this mean? Some speculate that this finding demonstrates a genetic basis for our two-party system of Democrats and Republicans (and explains why third parties often do so poorly). Others believe it implies that both parties need each other to survive, as demonstrated by our system of checks and balances. I suggest reading this interesting article, as it goes into far more detail than I do and does a better job elaborating on many of these concepts.