It seems your brain IS different depending on whether you are liberal or conservative.
… Neurological investigation has revealed that the anatomical structure of the brain appears to differ systematically depending on one[‘s political stance (more specifically, in the regions of the anterior cingulate cortex and the right amygdala; Kanai Feilden, Firth, & Rees, 2011). In short, liberals and conservatives quite literally think differently.
I think this insight in Johnrobert Tartaglione‘s The Neuropsychology of Influence and Decision-Making to be astounding, with some scary implication for political research and mind-control exercises. (And I’m not sure how my brain wiring would be seen, though it probably would probably flash “liberal” to most conservatives — even though I am all for individual responsibility and perhaps reflecting the “Stockholm Syndrome” moved towards the right as a young adult I lived through end of the Rhodesia/Zimbabwe civil war.)
This insight in the SMPS Foundation report also has implications for AEC marketing.
Duhachek, Tormala, and Han (2014), for example, found that conservatives prefer marketing messages that emphasize stability and consistency while liberals prefer messaging that emphasizes novelty and innovation. The bottom line is this: political orientation has a far more profound impact than simply whom we vote for.
The relevance: Say we are seeking a solid RFP response; and we want to both win the initial review and then succeed in the selection committee. Could we gain an edge with a bit of political research and then tailor our messaging accordingly depending on what we find?
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