Gordon Brown
(Department of Psychology)
Parasites, Politics, and Social Groups:
Possible Environmental Origins of Ideology
(joint work with Lukasz Walasek and Corey Fincher)
What causes individual differences in political preferences? Here we examine possible environmental determinants of
political orientation, and test the prediction that high levels of parasitic infection within a region will be associated with
more conservative ideology. We find strong correlations between US state-level ideology and state-level parasite stress
for measures of political ideology taken in the 1960s and 1970s, consistent with the hypothesis that high levels of
parasite stress lead to attitudes that are less open and exploratory, more in-group focused and system-justifying, less
accepting of social norms violations and less trusting of out-group members. The parasite stress/ideology association
survives the introduction of various controls but is weaker in more recent decades. It is suggested that many aspects of
conservative attitudes and cognition may be understood as rational responses to environmental factors, and that the
behavioural immune system may underpin individual differences in ideology.
Thursday 19th June 2014, 2.30 p.m.— 3.50 p.m.
Library, 3rd Floor Extension, Wolfson Research Exchange Area,
Seminar Room 3
Join us for light refreshments (coffee/tea and biscuits) before the Forum at 2.15 p.m.
This event is free and open to public: go.warwick.ac.uk/draw