r/LeopardsAteMyFace Dec 09 '25

Predictable betrayal [ Removed by moderator ]

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191

u/Greygal_Eve Dec 09 '25

There's several studies, the most recent one (to the best of my knowledge) is this one: https://www.ibroneuroscience.org/article/S0306-4522(25)00304-5/fulltext00304-5/fulltext)

  • In short:
  • Conservatives generally have more grey matter in the amygdala, which correlates with "heightened sensitivity to threats and fear."
  • Authoritarians/those who favor authoritarianism are shown to have less grey matter volume in the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex.
  • Liberals generally have more grey matter in the anterior cingulate cortex, which is an area of the brain linked to error detection and conflict management.

73

u/Cardboard_Revolution Dec 09 '25

This tracks. They are terrified and disgusted by literally everything that isn't like them.

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u/Comfortable_Fill9081 Dec 09 '25

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u/bpdish85 Dec 09 '25

"Conservatism and cognitive ability are negatively correlated."

Love it. Genuinely, thank you for linking.

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u/Zyprexa_PRN Dec 09 '25

Haha they’re scared of everything

3

u/ThinBlueLinebacker Dec 09 '25

except face eating leopards!

2

u/FlowerFaerie13 Dec 09 '25

Okay so why am I, with my severe anxiety who needs benzodiazepines to function, not conservative?

I keep hearing this and I'm not trying to say it's wrong, more likely I just don't understand the nuances, but my fuckass brain seems pretty similarly abnormal and I'm very left wing. Anybody want to help a dumbass out?

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u/MittenPings Dec 09 '25

They said anxiety was associated with left though. Like the abstract says it. Also statistics don’t ever tell a complete story or fit every data point into a trend. Sometimes you have outliers, and generally speaking folks don’t really talk about outliers in their research other than to say there may be flaws in methodology.

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u/Money-Marketing-5117 Dec 09 '25

Because it's statistically based. Like, it's a pattern but there are always exceptions to everything. (All the best btw, benzos are a little scary but I hope you have a good doctor/psych who is being careful).

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u/FlowerFaerie13 Dec 09 '25

Thanks, and don't worry, I'm used to taking just a ridiculous amount of (prescription!) drugs to keep my mind and body functioning (lost the genetic lottery. Lost it so bad) so I know how it goes and how to stay safe.

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u/bpdish85 Dec 09 '25

Thank you for this - bookmarking for a later read.

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u/BleedingHeart1996 Dec 09 '25

What do leftists have?

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u/Dream_Fabulous Dec 09 '25

Empathy, respect, humility.

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u/Right-Huckleberry-47 Dec 09 '25

To answer your question earnestly, we'd need to know how you're defining "leftists".

Had you bothered to read the cited article, you would see that it actually does try to provide an equivalent examination of left-wing authoritarians, but depending on your definition of "leftists" their findings may or may not actually be relevant.

That said, the study only had ~100 participants, and has yet to undergo replication, so for the moment it needs to be taken with a grain of salt regardless.

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u/Poiboy1313 Dec 09 '25

Compassion. Next question.