Two preregistered U.S. studies (N=6,181) find only minuscule links between conservatism and belief‑updating rigidity and mostly null results for economic conservatism. Extremism shows slightly stronger—but still small—associations with rigidity, suggesting context matters more than left–right identity.
— This undercuts broad partisan psych claims and pushes scholars and media to focus on when and why rigidity spikes rather than stereotyping one side.
Lakshya Jain
2026.01.13
80% relevant
Both the article and the existing idea push back on simple psychological caricatures of political camps. The Argument’s polling and discussion of externalizing vs internalizing emotional styles maps onto the prior finding that ideology is a weak predictor of rigid belief‑updating — both demand nuance and better measurement before sweeping claims about partisan mental states.
Tyler Cowen
2025.10.07
100% relevant
Bowes et al. report Cohen’s d ≈ .05 for conservatism vs liberalism and average |β| ≈ .07 for extremism; conclusion: broad claims are unwarranted.
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