Low IQ & Conservative Beliefs Linked to Prejudice

[JDPriestly]

19. Here is what the article actually said on these points.

"Low-intelligence adults tend to gravitate toward socially conservative ideologies, the study found. Those ideologies, in turn, stress hierarchy and resistance to change, attitudes that can contribute to prejudice, Hodson wrote in an email to LiveScience."

Prejudice was merely one symptom of "stress [on] hierarchy" and "resistance to change." Conservatism proclaims itself to be about these two factors. Hence, the preference for the top-down business model and the desire to avoid government "interference" in business decision-making since the government might require a business to change its conduct and policies.

In addition, the article explains:

"The children in the studies had their intelligence assessed at age 10 or 11; as adults ages 30 or 33, their levels of social conservatism and racism were measured. [Life's Extremes: Democrat vs. Republican]"

and
"Social conservatives were defined as people who agreed with a laundry list of statements such as 'Family life suffers if mum is working full-time,' and 'Schools should teach children to obey authority.' Attitudes toward other races were captured by measuring agreement with statements such as "I wouldn't mind working with people from other races." (These questions measured overt prejudiced attitudes, but most people, no matter how egalitarian, do hold unconscious racial biases; Hodson's work can't speak to this "underground" racism.)"

http://news.yahoo.com/low-iq-conservative-beliefs-linked-prejudice-180403506.html

Socially conservative attitudes and racism were tested separately. Racism correlated to both lower intelligence and conservatism.

The article is quite clear and views the study as conclusive. This does not surprise me at all. That conservatives don't read the article accurately is consistent with the findings in the study.

Some conservatives may be as intelligent as some liberals. But on the average, liberals are more intelligent than conservatives.