“Your genes make your brain and your brain has a certain structure and that structure is going to really make some people drawn to novelty, new ideas, change, diversity,” Haidt said. “Other people are going to prefer things that are sort of predictable, controllable, more safe. As these kids grow up, they are going to be exposed to all kinds of ideas and social groups. And maybe one group is more radical or obnoxious to authority and that seems really cool to the first kid but is sort of disturbing to the second kid. ”
By the time people reach voting age, their “moral minds” are becoming more set. And while people tend to get more conservative as they get older, campaign events and presidential debates rarely have the power to override neurological wiring and years of personal experience.
“The nature of persuasion is that we don’t persuade just by reason, we only change our mind when it feels right,” Haidt said. “So if you don’t trust the messenger or you have years of conditioning or part of your political identity, you’re not going to be persuaded by a study showing that actually government will do a better job on this.”
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