Conservatives are more attractive than liberals, study finds

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Time for a fun thread.

https://www.indy100.com/article/conserv ... er-8181196

Trolololol...

Hot people are more likely to support right-wing parties because they are stronger and more successful than their more liberal peers, apparently.

That's according to a study carried out by Rolfe Daus Peterson, a political scholar from Susquehanna University and Carl Palmar, assistant professor in politics at Illinois State University.

The researchers claim that never before has the effects of physical attractiveness on politics been examined on this level and that there is "good reason to believe that individuals’ physical attractiveness may alter their political values and worldviews".

They said that their findings prove attractive people tend to lean towards the right because they have better social skills and are more popular, competent and intelligent due to the "halo effect" - an idea that bias and stereotypes influence the way people judge others.

Writing about their findings in the Politics and Life Sciences journal published in December 2017, the pair said that on average, hotter people have an easier life so don't see the need for more welfare, aid and government support, unlike their left-wing counterparts.

How did the researchers come to this conclusion?

Using figures from two earlier surveys, the pair said they soothed concerns around the bias of attractiveness because obviously different people find different things attractive, right?

First, the scholars took figures from the 1972, 1974 and 1976 American National Studies surveys that asked those taking part to evaluate the appearance of others.

The survey also explored participants political beliefs, income, race, gender, and education. They then compared those results with the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS) that examined the characteristics of over 10,000 high school graduates who were rated by others on their level of attractiveness.

Bringing everything together, Peterson and Palmer argue a connection between an individual's physical attractiveness and political beliefs could be revealed.

They went on to argue that although what people view as attractive may vary, criteria for attractiveness appears to be consistent within cultural groups, pointing to earlier evidence of what beauty is and means.

Attractive people tend to be conservative because of a 'blind spot'

The scholars said hot people lean towards the right because they grow to develop a blind spot that leads them to not see the need for more government support or aid in society - a core liberal value.

They add that attractive people don’t face the same hurdles as others as their attractiveness gains them more attention and they are more successful in social situations. Their lives are generally “easier,” the pair claim.

They add:

Even though this blind spot may not be universally held and physically attractive individuals do not always have easier lives, on average, physically attractive individuals face fewer hurdles navigating the social world.

They conclude that because of this, they expect attractive people to be more likely to support right-wing conservative parties and point to another study that concluded that conservatives are more attractive.

What about all the ugly guys who become right-wing anti-feminists because they think that all women are shallow?

A lot of so-called "incel" guys are like this. Look it up.

Warning: If you read stuff by "incels", you may die laughing.

This is blatantly fallacious nonsense!
All I need to do to invalidate this premise is to look in the mirror...

I'm'a disagree.

From about 17 until my late 50s, I was attractive enough that total strangers (guys) would sometimes walk into trees and light poles, because they were looking at me instead of watching where they were going.

Nobody was ever seriously hurt that I know of. Yes, I did run back to check on them if I heard or saw anything. It took me a while to figure out what was happening, because I was an ugly duckling type as a kid.

Been a bleeding heart liberal all my life.

I did have a problem with attracting a lot... and I mean a LOT... of conservative guys. This baffled me, since I never concealed my politics.

Attractiveness does not equate to good social skills. People that are attractive might think thier social skills are better then they are because others are probably more willing to put up with them or are so attracted to them they do not notice.

My dear naive young woman...
Walking into light polls as a result of being distracted by a beautiful woman is one of the first rules in the book:
"How to influence chicky babes to like you..."
It is a cynical ploy of manipulative behaviour which has served us very well throughout the ages...
All "real" men are born with this manual engraved on their reptilian brain... <Arnold Schwarzenegger power pose activated>

You wish, uggo!

damn, really REALLY made me think

well sh!t i guess i missed the memo.

imo, I feel like people who are centre right or centre left are the most attractive, and the more extreme folks on either side are less attractive. That's obviously not a hard and fast rule though...but I wonder if being unattractive and the resulting treatment from society makes one more likely to polarise on one side or the other. I dunno.

Cool study, anyway.

So says the study that would probably say that people who believe in "family values" (a longtime held conservative/Republican view) are more attractive than people who don't believe in "family values"

My avatar is me in 2009. I am of a liberal political bent, though not completely liberal. In some ways, I am even conservative.

Am I attractive? LOL

I think the political side of things is only one part of whether someone is attractive or not (there are a lot of things that go into whether someone is attractive or not). My wife and I both lean towards the liberal side although I may be a little more conservative than her. I will not be mistaken with the terms "Tea Party" or "Alt-Right" by any sense of the imagination. Just because someone is conservative or Republican does not make them attractive by any sense of the definition. From a political stand point if someone is attractive or not with someone else is either (1) how much they have in common with their political views or (2 - as is the case of one of accounting profs from undergrad and her husband, who are total opposites politically) if they love to debate each other on everything politically but yet still love each other regardless of what was said.

Isn't most of Hollywood liberal?

Aren't most actors successful and attractive?

You are attractive if you say you are.

#malepositivity

Most Hollywood films are full of patriotic, militaristic propaganda, shameless product placement and racist stereotypes ... so no.

I was thinking more of the political leanings of the actors themselves.