Verlan Lewis (Cambridge): The Fallacy of Essential Ideological Constructs in American Political Science. What is ideology? It is more than just the sum total of our own individual political beliefs — an ideology is, in some ways, like a coalition of ideas. Dan Balz on the deep-seated roots of divisive U.S. politics. Are our political beliefs encoded in our DNA? Thomas B. Edsall investigates. The evolutionary roots of partisanship: A review of Our Political Nature: The Evolutionary Origins of What Divides Us by Avi Tuschman (and a look at why racist people tend to be conservative). Do people get their politics from their parents? A new study says conservatives react more strongly to insults than liberals. Want to reduce polarization? You need to improve political journalism. From Pacific Standard, what’s the appeal of angry, polarized media? A new sociological study suggests watching or listening to shows that confirm our political prejudices help us feel like part of a community; and people hold negative views of political and social activists, and their unwillingness to associate with such people dampens the likelihood of changing their behavior. What do liberals and conservatives look for in a date? New research suggests that people even solve math problems differently if their political ideology is at stake. Dylan Matthews on how people argue with research they don’t like: If you ever need to rebut a study whose conclusion you don't like, just follow this simple flowchart. Want to win a political debate? Try making a weaker argument.
