Polarization and Emotional Response to Threats: The Case of Covid-19
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14738/assrj.1111.17852Keywords:
Psychopathy, polarization, Covid-19, fight or flight response, JEL codes: D91, I10Abstract
In this paper, we ask how polarization is related to innate responses to threats. Through an online survey, we study the relationship between polarization about Covid-19 mitigation measures and psychopathy, a condition characterized by a reduced emotional response to perceived threats. We find that polarization is significantly lower for individuals with high psychopathy traits. This suggests that polarization over emotionally-charged political issues may be related to a biological mechanism that operates in high-risk environments: the fight or flight response.
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Copyright (c) 2024 Pedro Hemsley, Flavio Moraes, Lynda Pavão
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