Smart people tend to self‑select into ideologies that offer internally coherent explanations for major social puzzles; when one ideology (here, 'wokism') supplies such an account, it attracts elites and expertise, reinforcing its dominance. That selection effect matters independently of whether intelligence is innate: it shapes who makes policy, runs institutions, and sets cultural norms.
— If ideological appeal is driven by cognitive selection, political strategy must focus on intellectual argumentation and institutional recruitment, not just messaging or culture-war mobilization.
Steve Stewart-Williams
2026.09.30
85% relevant
The article summarizes Henry & Napier’s empirical finding that higher education strengthens political ingroup favoritism (stronger pro‑liberal favoritism among educated liberals and pro‑conservative favoritism among educated conservatives), which is a concrete instance of cognitive selection: educational attainment clarifies and amplifies ideological identity and sorting rather than softening it.
Beshay Sakla
2026.09.08
85% relevant
The article presents survey evidence that many Democrats and Republicans place themselves to the left or right of their party and that those who are relatively more liberal or conservative are also more critical of their party. That pattern concretely maps onto the existing idea that cognitive/selection processes concentrate ideologies within coalitions and that intra‑coalition sorting drives political dynamics.
2026.05.04
100% relevant
Nathan Cofnas’s argument that the left has a 'crushing intelligence advantage' among elites because wokism coherently follows from the equality thesis — and that conservatives must understand and correct why smart people prefer the left.
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