Do Born Again Christians Have Smaller Brains?
Q: Duke University conducted a study that “shows” that born again Christians have smaller brains than other protestants. I am curious to know how solid the science is. – Anonymous …
Q: Duke University conducted a study that “shows” that born again Christians have smaller brains than other protestants. I am curious to know how solid the science is. – Anonymous …
It happens like clockwork. Every few years, researchers contrive yet another study to prove that conservatives are mentally deficient. This time, the attack comes from evolutionary psychologist Satoshi Kanazawa in his current paper, Why Liberals and Atheists Are More Intelligent. To be fair, gunning for conservatives does not appear to be his primary motive. Instead, he seems to have tied himself in knots trying to affirm a pet theory. Either way, he has recklessly disparaged millions. The methodology is atrocious. …
Are Liberals More Intelligent than Conservatives? Another Broken Study Says It Is SoRead More »
Will chewing gum make you smarter? My friends said it won’t. Please help me decide. – Jennifer, Texas …
This entry is not about global warming. That topic is incidental. It is about respect for diversity of opinion and the American Psychological Association’s hostility toward those with whom they disagree. …
When it comes to diversity training, I know whereof I speak. Having been subjected to 40 weeks worth during psychologist school – and that’s just for starters – I should be as “culturally competent” as they come. If aliens ever visit Earth I should be sent to greet them. …
Denver’s Diversity Training Video and its Place in the Diversity IndustryRead More »
Q: In light of your previous intellectual truck-bombings of such junk-psych as the “conservative crybaby” study, I was interested in getting your opinion on a new study put out by NYU and UCLA’s psych departments claiming that the brains of left-wingers are more “tolerant of ambiguity and conflict” than those of right-wingers, based on a simple letter-recognition test. …
Dial M for Misinterpretation: Psychology’s Latest Attack on ConservativesRead More »
In 1994, the controversial book The Bell Curve examined intelligence in American society and asserted that whites outperform other races on IQ tests. The American Psychological Association was quick to respond, launching a task force to meticulously scrutinize the methodology behind the book. Throughout dozens of publications, a veritable contest took place: who could most eloquently and irrevocably discredit The Bell Curve? The book was called polarizing, biased, and specious. …
Curing Conservatism: Psychology’s Abuse of ResearchRead More »
Last month, I examined one of the studies embraced in the current Psychology Today article, “The Ideological Animal” (Dixit, 2007). That study asserted that conservatives, among numerous other deficits, are lower in openness to experience and integrative complexity than liberals, and that people choose conservatism because it serves to reduce their inherent fear and anxiety (Jost, et al., 2003). The poor dears. …
How to Spot a Broken Study: The Baby Conservative ProjectRead More »
You may have heard the news by now. People who hold conservative political opinions are suffering from a syndrome in need of a cure. How do we know this? Because a professor of psychology has demonstrated it to be so. The news has been getting a lot of press lately. …
A Methodology Critique in Defense of Those Wascally WepublicansRead More »