Rather than simply say, “I couldn’t agree with you more,” I (probably not for the first time) offer the summary of this study that always stuck with me:
“A study by scientists at New York University and the University of California, Los Angeles, found differences in how self-described liberal and conservative research participants responded to changes in patterns. Participants were asked to tap a keyboard when the letter “M” appeared on a computer monitor and to refrain from tapping when they saw a “W.” The letter “M” appeared four times more frequently than “W,” conditioning participants to press the keyboard on almost every trial. Liberal participants made fewer mistakes than conservatives when they saw the rare “W,” indicating to the researchers that these participants were better able to accept changes or conflicts in established patterns. The participants were also wired to an electroencephalograph that recorded activity in their anterior cingulate cortex, the part of the brain that detects conflicts between a habitual tendency and a more appropriate response. Liberals were significantly more likely than conservatives to show activity in the brain circuits that deal with conflicts during the experiment, and this correlated with their greater accuracy in the test.”
It puts the issue you raise in very sharp relief.
It also poses a bit of a political dilemma, because – as has been said by Trump supporters on any number of fronts – ignoring these differences is done at the Democrats’ peril.
How do you speak directly to vast groups of people who hold different values, different beliefs, and who fundamentally process information differently ?
I think the Trump team did it by finding the single biggest block of Republican voters with a very similar demo- and psychographic to whom they could strategically market. That block was big enough that – provided their message didn’t alienate too many other potential voters – they could ride it to an EC win.
I don’t know whether a single block exists for the Democrats that would allow them to ignore the rest of the (party or) country and still win the election.
I don’t think that’s what happened on the left this time … at all. I think hatred for Trump was the single biggest factor in Biden’s support.
I’m not sure they’re going to have a similar circumstance again.
I think they need to get busy … very busy, slicing and dicing the data and arriving at a strategy for 2024.