This thesis aims to clarify the nature of the relationship between moral reasoning, as per the neo-Kohlbergian DIT approach of Rest and his colleagues, and liberalism-conservatism. Moral reasoning and liberalism-conservatism are consistently found to be related but the resultant interpretation that liberals are more moral-cognitively advanced than conservatives has been challenged by Emler and his colleagues who argue that the DIT is liberally biased. Subsequent research on this issue has produced a methodological quagmire that this thesis aims to proceed beyond. The specific aim of this thesis is to test several different (or competing) hypotheses purporting to explain the relationship between Kohlbergian moral reasoning and liberalism-conservatism. These are (1) that liberals are more morally advanced than conservatives; (2) that "advanced moral reasoning" is merely social presentation; (3) that moral reasoning is separately constrained by moral development and conservatism; (4) that moral development and liberalism represent distinct paths to postconventional reasoning preference; (5) that moral reasoning differences between liberals and conservatives are broader than usually thought; (6) that the political content of moral issues affects moral reasoning differences between liberals and conservatives; and (7) that moral reasoning instruments have exaggerated moral reasoning differences between liberals and conservatives. Study 1 found that a non-ipsative, indirect moral reasoning measure was correlated with liberalism-conservatism thus disconfirming hypotheses 2 and 7. Additionally, hypothesis 5 was not supported by several DIT findings. Opposing hypotheses 2 and 6, Study 2 found that a conservative version of the DIT was correlated with liberalism-conservatism although a potential methodological issue arose. Study 3 developed an objective measure of moral comprehension, broader in scope than previous moral comprehension measures, which demonstrated acceptable reliability and validity. Employing this measure, Study 4 found that moral comprehension and liberalism were weakly correlated and that they independently predicted moral reasoning, although their interaction did not. Together, these findings provide some support to hypotheses 1 and 4 but not hypotheses 3 and 6. Overall these findings reveal that liberals appear more moral-cognitively advanced than conservatives but, compared to conservatives, liberals appear to indicate preference for advanced moral reasoning earlier in their moral-cognitive development. This latter mechanism appears stronger and suggests that, although DIT scores are still somewhat reflective of moral-cognitive development, the DIT�s estimate of liberals� moral-cognitive development is elevated. Future research can continue to explore these hypotheses (e.g., via longitudinal and/or "faking" studies) and, in so doing, further clarify the relationship between Kohlbergian moral reasoning and liberalism-conservatism.

Increasing stress levels over the past 30 years have reached an all-time high, which has also correlated with an increase in medical insurance costs due to the adverse effects on life expectancy, obesity rates, and non-communicable disease deaths. An additional social problem affecting the U.S. is a 20-year increase in political dichotomy. Research has shown a distinction between liberals and conservatives on a variety of characteristics ranging from sleep patterns, disgust, personality, and even cleanliness. This current study used two other characteristics that correlate with both stress and political orientation, and they are happiness and religiosity. The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between perceived stress, happiness, religiosity, and political orientation. Two theories chosen for this study included System Justification Theory (SJT) and Moral Foundations Theory (MFT). Both theories relate to the differences between liberals and conservatives on happiness, religion, and morality. This study had 201 participants recruited via Amazon's MTurk and used a hierarchical multiple regression model, which includes the following psychometric instruments: Perceived Stress Scale-10, Subjective Happiness Scale, Satisfaction With Life Scale, Religious Orientation Scale (Intrinsic and Extrinsic), and the Modified Wilson-Patterson Inventory. There was a significant effect found between intrinsic religiosity and conservative political orientation. In assisting social and behavioral scientists at better understanding stress differences and how humans cope in unique ways, positive social change is made possible by mitigating stress levels and therefore decreasing healthcare costs.

The current research explored how one’s motivational focus and political orientation may interact to produce cognitive rigidity. Past literature provides evidence for associations between approach-based orientation and cognitive flexibility and between avoidance-based motives and cognitive rigidity (e.g., Cacioppo, Priester, & Berntson, 1993; Friedman & Förster, 2005; Förster, Friedman, Özelsel & Denzler, 2006, Isen & Daubman, 1984; Mikulincer, Kedem & Paz, 1990). Further, research on political orientation suggests a strong association between conservatism and cognitive rigidity (Jost, Glaser, Kruglanski, & Sulloway, 2003). Can approach/avoidance motivation help explain this link between political orientation and rigidity? To answer this question, we manipulated approach/avoidance orientation using primes that focused individuals on what they should do versus what they should not do; there was also a no-prime control group. The cognitive rigidity task involved categorizing prototypic and non-prototypic items. For each item, participants provided goodness of fit ratings and discrete category judgment of whether the item was a member of the category (i.e., “yes” or “no”). Cognitive rigidity was operationalized as greater exclusion of non-prototypic items from a category. We found approach/avoidance motivation and political orientation significantly interacted to predict cognitive rigidity. An avoidance prime produced lower goodness of fit ratings and more “no” category membership decisions for political conservatives, but not political liberals. There were no differences across groups for the approach prime. These findings suggest that conservatives’ cognitive rigidity may be attributable to their greater avoidance motivation; conservatives appear to be sensitive to negative outcomes, and when these are cued, cognitive rigidity increases.

In this dissertation, two exemplar-based models of categorization, the General Context Model (GCM) and the Exemplar Based Random Walk model (EBRW), were used to describe between-group categorization differences in artificial and natural language categories. Prior research has shown that political Conservatives in avoidance mode are more exclusive categorizers of natural language category members than Conservatives in approach mode, but this effect was absent for Liberals (Rock & Janoff-Bulman, 2010). In Experiment 1, experimenter-generated stimuli were used to show that the EBRW could account for between-group differences in categorization decisions. In Experiment 2, the data collected by Rock and Janoff-Bulman were used to develop techniques allowing the GCM to account for between-group differences in natural language categorization decisions. Experiment 3 extends these methods to allow the EBRW to account for between-group differences in natural language categorization decisions. Across these experiments, the models identify between-group differences in determining similarity, bias to give an "in-the-category" decision, and the amount of information required to make a categorization decision. Techniques for modeling natural language categorization decisions are discussed.

Terror management theory predicts that when people are reminded of their own mortality (mortality salience), they cling more strongly to cultural worldviews which provide them with a sense of security (Greenberg et al., 1986). For some people, this reaction to mortality salience also involves derogation of, and discrimination against, “other” people and cultures. An increasing tendency towards sensationalism in the news media has resulted in even more frequent reminders of vulnerability and death (e.g., terrorism, violent crime, health and safety concerns). In two experiments involving 868 introductory psychology students, the present research examined the extent to which their (a) support for authoritarian social policies relevant to Canada and (b) authoritarian attitudes in general are influenced by mortality salience. Specifically, right-wing authoritarianism, attachment security, and political orientation were measured in participants in both experiments. Participants were then prompted to think about either their own mortality or about another aversive experience having nothing to do with mortality. Next, participants were asked their opinions regarding authoritarian social policies (Experiment 1) and beliefs indicative of right-wing authoritarianism (Experiment 2). Multiple regression, analysis of variance, and t-tests revealed that individuals with (a) high pre-existing right-wing authoritarian attitudes and (b) conservative political beliefs increased their support for authoritarian social policies following mortality salience (Experiment 1). In contrast, individuals with (a) high attachment security and (b) moderate political beliefs decreased their support for right-wing authoritarian beliefs following mortality salience (Experiment 2), although the former relationship only approached statistical significance. The findings are discussed in terms of their implications for the news media, for social policies and political opinions, and for social justice.

abstract: Using a modified news media brand personality scale developed by Kim, Baek, and Martin (2010), this study measured the personalities of eight news media outlets and combined them into the same associative network with participants’ self-image via the Pathfinder tool (Schvaneveldt, Durso, & Dearholt, 1989). Using these networks, this study was able to both explore the personality associations of participants and observe if self-congruity, measured by the distance between the self-image node and a brand, is significantly related to participant preference for a brand. Self-congruity was found to be significantly related to preference. However, this relationship was mediated by participants’ fiscal and social orientation. Overall, using Pathfinder to generate associative networks and measure self-congruity could be a useful approach for understanding how people perceive and relate to different news media outlets. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Human Systems Engineering 2018

This study analyzes the relationship between political ideology, voting behavior and emotional responses after Peruvian presidential elections in 2011. Scales of intolerance for ambiguity, need for closure, right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and the right-wing political orientation were used to assess right-wing political conservatism. A structural equation model proposes that intolerance of ambiguity and need for closure exert a direct effect on RWA. Also, RWA influences directly the right-wing political orientation, which exerts a direct influence on negative emotional responses and an inverse effect on positive emotional responses after O. Humala’s victory. Final discussion focuses on the contemporary relevance of left/right ideological continuum. / Este estudio analiza la relación entre la ideología política, el comportamiento electoral y las reacciones emocionales luego de las elecciones presidenciales de 2011 en una muestra de adultos de la ciudad de Lima. Se utilizaron escalas de intolerancia a la ambigüedad, necesidad de cierre cognitivo, autoritarismo de ala derecha (RWA) y orientación política de derecha. Un modelo de ecuaciones estructurales propone que la intolerancia a la ambigüedad y la necesidad de cierre cognitivo ejercen una influencia directa sobre el RWA, el mismo que influye positivamente sobre la orientación política de derecha, variable que finalmente influye sobre las reacciones emocionales luego de conocerse el triunfo del candidato Ollanta Humala. Se discute al final acerca de la vigencia contemporánea del continuo ideológico izquierda/derecha.

The aim of this study was to examine the extent to which U.S. newspapers covered the chatter surrounding the 2009/10 healthcare reform debate at the expense of the substance. Also of importance was how the political leanings of newspapers influenced the coverage they gave the issue in terms of tone and page or story prominence. Newspaper endorsement data from Editor & Publisher magazine were used to determine the political leanings of U.S. newspapers based on the candidate they endorsed in the 2008 U.S. presidential election. Newspaper articles related to the topic were retrieved from the Lexis-Nexis database and analyzed. The results showed that overall the healthcare reform debate received substantial coverage in U.S. newspapers; but the major part of the coverage was dedicated to the arguments, protests, and thoughts of people concerning the issue (90.3%) rather than the substance of the issue (9.7%). Implications of the results for media practitioners, communication scholars, and researchers were discussed.

Music fits in a larger media culture that can influence the thoughts and beliefs of many people. Specifically, there is an interest in the relationship between music and any influences it may have on political views or orientations. Based on the existing literature, it is hypothesized that there will be a significant correlation between political orientations and involvement in music and political orientations with music genre preferences. It is also hypothesized that there will be a relationship between socioeconomic status and music preferences. Furthermore, it is expected that participants will report a high level of music involvement, considering how accessible music is to many students (Agbo-Quaye & Robertson, 2010; RIAA, 2016). Results indicate that there is a correlation between political orientation and several genres, in addition to demographic variables. Participants reported a high level of music involvement and high usage of music streaming services. Additional analysis indicates that two of the top five genres participants listened to (alternative and religious music) can be a significant predictor of political orientation.

Det svenska partisystemet är relativt unikt till följd av att det har en tydlig endimensionell struktur. Internationell forskning har visat på samband mellan personlighetsfaktorer och politisk hemvist. Mest framträdande är kopplingen mellan öppenhet och vänstersympatier, samt samvetsgrannhet och högersympatier. Det förefaller även som att politiker skiljer sig från den genomsnittlige väljaren när det gäller framför allt extraversion, samvetsgrannhet och öppenhet. I en svensk kontext är forskningen mer begränsad och således finns ett behov av att nyansera bilden. För att undersöka dessa samband hos ungdomspolitiker i Sveriges största politiska ungdomsförbund, SSU och MUF, genomfördes en enkätundersökning baserad på BFI-44 med N = 161. Ett nationellt representativt stickprov om N = 1524 som genomfört BFI-10 i samband med en undersökning av SOM-institutet fick representera den genomsnittlige väljaren. För att testa hypoteserna genomfördes ett flertal independent samples t-test. Resultaten indikerade att ungdomspolitiker i SSU inte var mer öppna än ungdomspolitiker i MUF (d = 0.062) och att ungdomspolitiker i MUF var signifikant mer samvetsgranna än deras motparter i SSU (d = -0.28). Ungdomspolitiker i SSU visade signifikant högre resultat på neuroticism (d = 0.52) och ungdomspolitikerna som grupp var mer extroverta (d = 0.22) och öppna (d = 0.27) än den genomsnittlige väljaren. Resultaten låg i stora drag i linje med tidigare forskning. Några av avvikelserna gick inte att underbygga teoretiskt, men spekulerades kunna kopplas till den unika svenska politiska kontexten. Vidare spekulerar vi kring sambanden mellan personlighetsdrag och politisk preferens mot bakgrund av studiens resultat. / The Swedish political party system is relatively unique because of its clear one-dimensional structure. International research has shown a connection between personality characteristics and political affiliation. The connection that stands out is that between openness and left sympathies and conscientiousness and right sympathies. It also appears that politicians diverge from the average voter when it comes to extraversion, conscientiousness and openness. In a Swedish context the research is more limited and therefore there is a need to add nuance. To explore these relationships a survey based on BFI-44 was conducted with N = 161. A nationally representative sample of N = 1524 that had conducted BFI-10 as part of a survey by the SOM-insitute got to represent the average voter. To test the hypotheses a multitude of independent samples t-tests was conducted. The results indicated that the youth politicians of SSU were not more open than the youth politicians of MUF (d = 0.062), and that youth politicians of MUF were significantly more conscientious than their counterparts in SSU (d = -0.28). Youth politicians of SSU registered a significantly higher score for neuroticism (d = 0.52) and the youth politicians as a group were more extroverted (d = 0.22) and open (d = 0.27) than the average voter. The results were largely in line with earlier research. Some of the deviations couldn’t be supported from a theoretical perspective but was speculated to have a connection to the unique Swedish political context. Furthermore, we speculate about the connection between personality characteristics and political preference considering the results of this study.