The New American by
Liberals are not only more likely than conservatives to suppose that “emotion is a feature of rationality,” a series of three studies has shown, but also apparently believe it should be. In fact, they consider emotions more “functional” (utilitarian, essentially) than conservatives do despite reporting less emotional well-being.
The research was published in the journal Motivation and Emotion. Defining “functional” as “beneficial for individuals for adapting to the environment or attaining their goals,” the authors write in their abstract (summary):
Relying on feelings to guide thoughts and plans may be functional from the perspective of the individual but threaten the cohesion of social groups. Thus, liberals, who prioritize caring and fairness for individuals, may view emotion as more functional than do conservatives, who prioritize preserving social groups, hierarchies, and institutions. To test this, participants in three studies (total N = 1,355) rated political partisanship, beliefs about the functionality of emotion, and well-being.… Across all studies, the more liberal participants were, the more they viewed emotion as functional, despite reporting less emotional well-being…. These results suggest that emotion is viewed as more functional by those who prioritize the needs of individuals, but as less functional by those who prioritize the cohesion of social groups.
Note that these characterizations of liberals and conservatives are suspect. Consider that liberals don’t in a blanket sense actually prioritize “the needs of individuals” (while confusing needs with wants); they don’t, for example, care much about the “needs” of those opposing their politically correct agenda. Rather, leftists today try to “cancel” them for the very purpose of achieving “the cohesion of [woke] social groups.” But I digress.
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