title: Low-effort thought promotes political conservatism.
abstract: The authors test the hypothesis that low-effort thought promotes political conservatism. In Study 1, alcohol intoxication was measured among bar patrons; as blood alcohol level increased, so did political conservatism (controlling for sex, education, and political identification). In Study 2, participants under cognitive load reported more conservative attitudes than their no-load counterparts. In Study 3, time pressure increased participants' endorsement of conservative terms. In Study 4, participants considering political terms in a cursory manner endorsed conservative terms more than those asked to cogitate; an indicator of effortful thought (recognition memory) partially mediated the relationship between processing effort and conservatism. Together these data suggest that political conservatism may be a process consequence of low-effort thought; when effortful, deliberate thought is disengaged, endorsement of conservative ideology increases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Arkansas, 211 Memorial Hall, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA. eidelman@uark.edu
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eidelman
authors.forename: Christian S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Crandall
authors.forename: Jeffrey A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Goodman
authors.forename: John C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Blanchar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D001290:Attitude; D003071:Cognition; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory; D009511:New England; D011056:Political Systems; D011057:Politics; D012044:Regression Analysis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013850:Thinking; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult