Emotion Trumps Rationality: This is Your Brain on Politics
Posted: 07-01-2007 06:06 AM
excerpted from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19461257/site/newsweek/ --
"'Behind every reasoned decision is a reason for deciding,' [psychology researcher Drew] Westen writes [in his new book, The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation]... Because emotions are central to beliefs and values, if an appeal is purely rational it is unlikely to tickle the emotional brain circuits that affect what we do in the voting booth. To the contrary: emotions can trump rationality. '...
When voters are hooked up to brain-imaging devices while watching candidates, it is emotion circuits and not the rational frontal lobes that are most engaged. When voters assess who won a campaign debate, they almost always choose the candidate they liked better beforehand.
The rationality circuit 'isn’t typically open for business when partisans are thinking about things that matter to them,' Westen notes."
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The story you are about to read is true... to life... sorta. The names have been changed to protect me from a copyright infringement letter from FOX...
THE CITY: Sprangfeld, USA -THE PLACE: Mo's Pub
Lanny: I see there's another election coming up
Curl: What, AGAIN?
Homar: Hey pipe down you two, I'm trying to watch the roller derby
Lanny: That's not the roller derby Homar, that's the mayoral debate
Curl: ...You see how the two of them are skating around the issues
Homar: HEY yeah! WOOHOO! GO QUEMBY!
Lanny: How can you support such a sleazy wienie, Homar?
Homar: He's no sleazy wienie he's an easy election winner!
Curl: 15 terms as mayor of Sprangfeld, can't beat THAT with a stick.
Bernie: Can't beat free beer at election rallies, either!! ** BURP **
Lanny: But this time he's got competition from Rianar "The DETERMINATOR" Walfcastle
Curl: Who'da thought a muscle bound actor could be such a good debater!
Homar: Hmph! ANY one with half a brain can see he's a big phony baloney-
Curl: Umm, that was just an ad for Crustie Brand Old-Fashioned Synthetic Smokehouse Meats
Bernie: Oooh boy, they're really getting into it now -
Lanny: Mistresses and dresses and AFFAIRS? OH MY!
Bernie: I thought martial infidelity came with the job
Homar: --I call FOUL! That last crack was hitting below the belt way! Typical hypocritical Whozi behavior!
Curl: WHOzi??? RIANAR? Surely you mean Whatzi
Lanny: Don't you know the difference, Homar --?
Homar: What I wanna know is, Whozi think he's foolin' ?? Lousy stinkin' ducksteppin' Whatzi! Why doesn't he go back to Whatziland and run for ducktator!
Mo the Barkeep: Hey Homar, Frenk wants to say something to you
Professor Frenk: Mr. Sempsen, rather THAN surrender ourselves TO base AND calumnious partisan rancor I would SUGGEST engaging our opponents civilly AND respectfully IN an objective, logical analysis AND discussion of VITAL pressing issues of the day without excessively emotive bias, wouldn't you AGREE
Homar: Engage the WHO with the WHAT now? That's crazy talk. What are you, some kind of wiseacre emotionless NUT? -- Hey by the way pass the snacks Mo! Mmmm.... nuts.
Frenk: Oh, for hiaven glavin out loud!
...Meanwhile back at the 'nooklar' power plant
Smithars: At this rate we're safe, voters will never figure out you own BOTH the Whozis and the Whatizs sir.
Mr. Berns: EXCELLENT! Money well spent, I would say. But still, let's release the hounds, just for fun. Hmm?
"'Behind every reasoned decision is a reason for deciding,' [psychology researcher Drew] Westen writes [in his new book, The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation]... Because emotions are central to beliefs and values, if an appeal is purely rational it is unlikely to tickle the emotional brain circuits that affect what we do in the voting booth. To the contrary: emotions can trump rationality. '...
When voters are hooked up to brain-imaging devices while watching candidates, it is emotion circuits and not the rational frontal lobes that are most engaged. When voters assess who won a campaign debate, they almost always choose the candidate they liked better beforehand.
The rationality circuit 'isn’t typically open for business when partisans are thinking about things that matter to them,' Westen notes."
###
The story you are about to read is true... to life... sorta. The names have been changed to protect me from a copyright infringement letter from FOX...
THE CITY: Sprangfeld, USA -THE PLACE: Mo's Pub
Lanny: I see there's another election coming up
Curl: What, AGAIN?
Homar: Hey pipe down you two, I'm trying to watch the roller derby
Lanny: That's not the roller derby Homar, that's the mayoral debate
Curl: ...You see how the two of them are skating around the issues
Homar: HEY yeah! WOOHOO! GO QUEMBY!
Lanny: How can you support such a sleazy wienie, Homar?
Homar: He's no sleazy wienie he's an easy election winner!
Curl: 15 terms as mayor of Sprangfeld, can't beat THAT with a stick.
Bernie: Can't beat free beer at election rallies, either!! ** BURP **
Lanny: But this time he's got competition from Rianar "The DETERMINATOR" Walfcastle
Curl: Who'da thought a muscle bound actor could be such a good debater!
Homar: Hmph! ANY one with half a brain can see he's a big phony baloney-
Curl: Umm, that was just an ad for Crustie Brand Old-Fashioned Synthetic Smokehouse Meats
Bernie: Oooh boy, they're really getting into it now -
Lanny: Mistresses and dresses and AFFAIRS? OH MY!
Bernie: I thought martial infidelity came with the job
Homar: --I call FOUL! That last crack was hitting below the belt way! Typical hypocritical Whozi behavior!
Curl: WHOzi??? RIANAR? Surely you mean Whatzi
Lanny: Don't you know the difference, Homar --?
Homar: What I wanna know is, Whozi think he's foolin' ?? Lousy stinkin' ducksteppin' Whatzi! Why doesn't he go back to Whatziland and run for ducktator!
Mo the Barkeep: Hey Homar, Frenk wants to say something to you
Professor Frenk: Mr. Sempsen, rather THAN surrender ourselves TO base AND calumnious partisan rancor I would SUGGEST engaging our opponents civilly AND respectfully IN an objective, logical analysis AND discussion of VITAL pressing issues of the day without excessively emotive bias, wouldn't you AGREE
Homar: Engage the WHO with the WHAT now? That's crazy talk. What are you, some kind of wiseacre emotionless NUT? -- Hey by the way pass the snacks Mo! Mmmm.... nuts.
Frenk: Oh, for hiaven glavin out loud!
...Meanwhile back at the 'nooklar' power plant
Smithars: At this rate we're safe, voters will never figure out you own BOTH the Whozis and the Whatizs sir.
Mr. Berns: EXCELLENT! Money well spent, I would say. But still, let's release the hounds, just for fun. Hmm?