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political neuroscience

This shows a crowd of people in a musical venue with swirls around them.

·August 27, 2025·7 min read

Music Goosebumps Expose Unexpected Patterns in Belief

Aesthetic chills—goosebumps from music or art—are not just fleeting sensations but windows into human psychology. A large-scale study of over 8,000 people revealed that chills are tied to insight, self-transcendence, and even political leanings.

This shows a shadowy politician on a stage.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 15, 2025·4 min read

Dark Personality Traits in Politicians Fuel Political Polarization

New research reveals that politicians with narcissistic, psychopathic, or Machiavellian traits significantly increase affective polarization among voters. When citizens identify ideologically with such leaders, they become more hostile toward political opponents.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 10, 2025·4 min read

Shared Brain Circuit Drives Political Passion Across Ideologies

A new study has identified a brain circuit that correlates with how intensely people engage in politics, regardless of their political beliefs. Researchers examined data from 124 male military Veterans with penetrating brain injuries and found that lesions in certain brain areas affected levels of political involvement.

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·May 3, 2024·3 min read

Stress-Induced Brain Chemistry Changes Linked to Political Radicalism

A new study explores how brain chemistry influences political opinions through the "threat-based neural switch theory." This theory suggests that stress from economic crises and wars enhances susceptibility to simple, often radical, political messages by altering brain processes.

This shows two faces. One has a Union Flag painted on it.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·November 22, 2023·4 min read

Cognitive Skills Linked to Brexit Votes

A new study suggests a correlation between higher cognitive abilities and voting "Remain" in the 2016 Brexit referendum. Analyzing data from 3,183 UK couples, the study found that individuals with higher cognitive skills, as well as those with spouses possessing higher cognitive abilities, were more likely to vote "Remain."

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·October 26, 2023·5 min read

Redefining Death: The Push to Update the U.S. Death Act

A new survey reveals that 83% of 41 influential organizations support revisions to the U.S. Uniform Determination of Death Act. The act, defining death as either the irreversible cessation of brain or cardiopulmonary functions, is now under scrutiny.

This shows a person looking at a computer tablet with fake news written on it

Featured Psychology

·June 3, 2021·5 min read

Who’s More Susceptible to Believing Falsehoods?

Study reveals conservatives are less able to distinguish political truths from falsehoods, and the glut of right-wing media organizations producing politically incorrect content is likely to blame.

This shows words associated with tyrannical leaders

Featured Psychology

·July 15, 2020·4 min read

Attraction to ‘Tyrannical’ Leaders Linked to Dysfunctional Family Dynamics

Study found a correlation between adolescents who reported high levels of family conflict while growing up and those who later identified socially undesirable traits as ideal leadership qualities. A person who experiences high conflict during their teen years was 20% more likely to prefer a tyrannical model of leadership.

Fake News is spelled out in scrabble pieces

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·August 21, 2019·4 min read

Fake news can lead to false memories

Fabricated news stories cause people to create false memories, especially if the content of the stories align with their political beliefs. While people who scored low on cognitive tests were no more prone to forming false memories, they were more likely to remember false facts that aligned with their opinions. People with higher cognitive ability are more likely to question their personal biases and the news source.

Featured Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·November 14, 2017·5 min read

Left-Brained: Conservative Democrats Don’t Compute For Liberal Voters

A new study reveals progressive democrats are more likely to scrutinize inconsistencies in evaluate them as negative when candidates stray from the party line.