A neuroscientist explains what may be wrong with Trump supporters’ brains

[Snarkoleptic]

http://www.rawstory.com/2016/08/a-neuroscientist-explains-what-may-be-wrong-with-trump-supporters-brains/

Summary- Ill informed/stupid, easily spooked, look at the shiny object.

Studies have shown that people who lack expertise in some area of knowledge often have a cognitive bias that prevents them from realizing that they lack expertise. As psychologist David Dunning puts it in an op-ed for Politico, “The knowledge and intelligence that are required to be good at a task are often the same qualities needed to recognize that one is not good at that task — and if one lacks such knowledge and intelligence, one remains ignorant that one is not good at the task. This includes political judgment.” Essentially, they’re not smart enough to realize they’re dumb.

Science has unequivocally shown that the conservative brain has an exaggerated fear response when faced with stimuli that may be perceived as threatening. A classic study in the journal Psychophysiology found that conservatives have a stronger physiological reaction to startling noises and graphic images compared to liberals. A brain-imaging study published in Current Biology revealed that those who lean right politically tend to have a larger amygdala — a structure that is electrically active during states of fear and anxiety. And a 2014 fMRI study found that it is possible to predict whether someone is a liberal or conservative simply by looking at their brain activity while they view threatening or disgusting images, such as mutilated bodies. Specifically, the brains of self-identified conservatives generated more activity overall in response to the disturbing images.

Terror Management Theory predicts that when people are reminded of their own mortality, which happens with fear mongering, they will more strongly defend those who share their worldviews and national or ethnic identity, and act out more aggressively towards those who do not. Hundreds of studies have confirmed this hypothesis, and some have specifically shown that triggering thoughts of death tends to shift people towards the right.

Essentially, the loyalty of Trump supporters may in part be explained by America’s addiction with entertainment and reality TV. To some, it doesn’t matter what Trump actually says because he’s so amusing to watch. With Donald, you are always left wondering what outrageous thing he is going to say or do next. He keeps us on the edge of our seat, and for that reason, some Trump supporters will forgive anything he says. They are happy as long as they are kept entertained.

[C_U_L8R]

1. The world's passing them by.

They're the looked over - they want respect and something they can own for themselves.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

2. That's sick... selecting a president

based on entertainment value. I guess watching too much TV really has rotted their brains.

[Snarkoleptic]

3. That, plus the Dunning-Kruger effect is proof you can't cure stupid.

This is how we got Illinois' nighmare gov Bruce "Ruiner" Rauner.
Voters thought that the rich guy, who's never held elected office, must know how to govern.
That plus vague promises to shake things up.

[Hayduke Bomgarte]

4. "watching too much TV really has rotted their brains"

I don't think it's watching too much TV as much as WHAT they watch.

Of the RWNJs I have as co-workers and even relatives, The TV shows I hear many of them talking about are mostly reality shows. The likes of Survivor, Dancing with the Stars, etc. Nothing with any sort of plot to follow. Nothing to stimulate the imagination or provoke any actual thought. Just sit, slacked jawed and drool, while soaking up the stupid.

JMO

[Siwsan]

5. I am, unfortunately, very familiar with people suffering from 'Trump-Brain' syndrome

This individual is a hard core tea partier, and she would sit in my cubicle and blither, always prefacing the blither with “I have a friend who is a Liberal, like you, and he was telling me about....” and she would go on a rant about the the “Amero”, and some mysterious and nefarious super highway that was being built. One conspiracy after another. I’d engage in the conversation as little as possible - mostly saying I was busy and didn’t have time to talk or listen, but this went on, several times a week, for months. And she knew I was a Liberal only by reputation - certainly not by interaction because she was one scary individual with a well known reputation for vengeance and intimidation. You didn't DARE disagree with her because she'd get pretty nasty.

One day I had finally had enough, threw caution to the wind and asked, “Is your friend a Libertarian?” Of course, she responded ‘Yes’.

I smiled and said “Well, even you MUST know that a Liberal and a Libertarian are not even remotely the same thing!!” and I laughed at her. Yea - maybe I was rude and risky, but it was obviously a “I can’t believe you are that ignorant!” kind of laugh.

She turned BRIGHT red, kind of hissed at me, and stormed out of my cubicle. Thus ended her visits.

Unfortunately, I spent the next 6 years in her cross hairs because calling her a hard core tea partier isn’t as accurate as calling her a rabid, insane, hard core tea partier who bore a significant grudge. I made her look foolish and so I had to pay the price. She ended up being the #1 reason I gave, during my exit interview, for “retiring” three years ahead of my plans. Life is just too short.

And as a side note, the company was fully aware of her behaviors. Unfortunately she is extremely litigious, and she owes her job to a completely incompetent HR department. However, my old company was just 'partnered' with another so hopefully her reign of terror will be ending, soon.

[Buckeye_Democrat]

6. Many of them aren't critical thinkers

That's probably why so few scientists are Republicans now:
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2010/12/lab_politics.html

A Pew Research Center Poll from July 2009 showed that only around 6 percent of U.S. scientists are Republicans; 55 percent are Democrats, 32 percent are independent, and the rest "don't know" their affiliation.

When I was in college, the professors challenged our beliefs constantly. It helped students to doubt themselves and consider more information before making strong judgments. That especially happens in scientific endeavors where the focus is typically on disproving ideas.

[Nitram]

7. It's not reality TV that is to blame. It is the right wing media echo chamber.