27 non-political questions reveal your politics
July 30, 2016 9:54 PM Subscribe
27 strange non-political scenarios will appear. Please respond honestly and alone and we'll guess your brain's political ideology. Explanation, primary source, and supplemental info at end.
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
Have not read the supplemental info, but I'm guessing that's a control question.
posted by galaxy rise at 10:02 PM on July 30, 2016 [21 favorites]
Have not read the supplemental info, but I'm guessing that's a control question.
posted by galaxy rise at 10:02 PM on July 30, 2016 [21 favorites]
Seems like the underlying factors are disgust responses to vermin and existential / mortal anxiety. Wasn't there a similar "authoritarianism" quiz that flew about the intertubes recently?
posted by phenylphenol at 10:03 PM on July 30, 2016
posted by phenylphenol at 10:03 PM on July 30, 2016
I suspect maybe the paper vs. fruit question was there to weed out results of people who were just clicking without really reading the questions.
posted by smcameron at 10:03 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by smcameron at 10:03 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
Actually, something that goes really well with good vanilla ice-cream is balsamic vinegar.
posted by carter at 10:12 PM on July 30, 2016 [43 favorites]
posted by carter at 10:12 PM on July 30, 2016 [43 favorites]
I Googled That For Myself.
The original Disgust Scale (DS) was Haidt, McCauley & Rozin (1994). But perhaps a three-factor version is also a reliable instrument. This reduced version tries to establish "core disgust, animal-reminder disgust, and contamination."
Sounds like the original Disgust Scale started with 8 candidate domains: Food, Animals, Body Products, Sex, Envelope Violations, Death, Hygiene, Magic.
posted by phenylphenol at 10:14 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
The original Disgust Scale (DS) was Haidt, McCauley & Rozin (1994). But perhaps a three-factor version is also a reliable instrument. This reduced version tries to establish "core disgust, animal-reminder disgust, and contamination."
Sounds like the original Disgust Scale started with 8 candidate domains: Food, Animals, Body Products, Sex, Envelope Violations, Death, Hygiene, Magic.
posted by phenylphenol at 10:14 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
brains a Democrat at 78%. Thanks, but I'm a little left for that.
posted by lkc at 10:14 PM on July 30, 2016 [13 favorites]
posted by lkc at 10:14 PM on July 30, 2016 [13 favorites]
"Perfect moderate" 50%. Figures.
posted by blucevalo at 10:16 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by blucevalo at 10:16 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
My brain's 53% liberal, 47% conservative according to the test. While the test is correct that I'm a Dem I'm not liberal, I'm a progressive and so skeptical about that 47% number.
posted by Bella Donna at 10:18 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by Bella Donna at 10:18 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
A
posted by -harlequin- at 10:20 PM on July 30, 2016 [8 favorites]
61% Dem. I don't let the 39% part vote, though.
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 10:22 PM on July 30, 2016 [31 favorites]
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 10:22 PM on July 30, 2016 [31 favorites]
Probably an Independent, you know how they are.
posted by No-sword at 10:23 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by No-sword at 10:23 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I would have thought I'd be a 100% Democrat. I guess it was the squished worm question that did me. Democrats, apparently, enjoy killing defenceless worms with their bare feet.
posted by Laotic at 10:27 PM on July 30, 2016 [20 favorites]
posted by Laotic at 10:27 PM on July 30, 2016 [20 favorites]
84% Liberal, or Kuveral if you start typing with your left hand off, higher than I would have thought, but these kind of tests always put me way to the left. Which was a surprise to me a few years ago, and certainly would surprise a few people.
I was distracted the whole time thinking "What? That bothers someone?". I try not to think about the questions too much, I don't want to suss the pattern out. It's probably better if we don't repeat the questions here for people that want to take it fresh.
posted by bongo_x at 10:28 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
I was distracted the whole time thinking "What? That bothers someone?". I try not to think about the questions too much, I don't want to suss the pattern out. It's probably better if we don't repeat the questions here for people that want to take it fresh.
posted by bongo_x at 10:28 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
2/3 Dem. But as a New Zealander who has lived half his life in Australia, I don't think I am a good fit for their neat little US-centric binary scale. If I lived in the US I would probably vote neither Rep nor Dem most of the time.
Frankly, I am mildly disgusted at the way some people are so easily disgusted. But each to their own.
posted by Autumn Leaf at 10:28 PM on July 30, 2016 [13 favorites]
Frankly, I am mildly disgusted at the way some people are so easily disgusted. But each to their own.
posted by Autumn Leaf at 10:28 PM on July 30, 2016 [13 favorites]
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
Replicants.
posted by roger ackroyd at 10:31 PM on July 30, 2016 [20 favorites]
Replicants.
posted by roger ackroyd at 10:31 PM on July 30, 2016 [20 favorites]
It depends on the paper? You know what I mean? How paper can age and dry so it's like the texture of a Pringle, but much thinner? You know what I mean, right? If it was that vs a disgusting fruit, I would at least pause. But in general, fruit yes, paper no.
posted by blnkfrnk at 10:32 PM on July 30, 2016 [18 favorites]
posted by blnkfrnk at 10:32 PM on July 30, 2016 [18 favorites]
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
They're just questions, Leon... It's a test, designed to provoke an emotional response... Shall we continue?
(It said my brain is a Republican, which my brain is really, really not. A lot of these questions seemed to be designed to gauge my squeamishness, which I don't think correlates at all with my politics. Pinkos can be grossed out by maggots and dead cats too. Just because I don't want the cook at the restaurant to give me his cold, that doesn't mean I don't want him to earn a fair wage!)
posted by Ursula Hitler at 10:33 PM on July 30, 2016 [69 favorites]
They're just questions, Leon... It's a test, designed to provoke an emotional response... Shall we continue?
(It said my brain is a Republican, which my brain is really, really not. A lot of these questions seemed to be designed to gauge my squeamishness, which I don't think correlates at all with my politics. Pinkos can be grossed out by maggots and dead cats too. Just because I don't want the cook at the restaurant to give me his cold, that doesn't mean I don't want him to earn a fair wage!)
posted by Ursula Hitler at 10:33 PM on July 30, 2016 [69 favorites]
I swear I'm not a robot. I type the text in the box every time they ask.
posted by blnkfrnk at 10:33 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by blnkfrnk at 10:33 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
"Perfect moderate" 50%. Figures
Finally, a heretic burning everyone can get behind.
posted by Panjandrum at 10:35 PM on July 30, 2016 [9 favorites]
Finally, a heretic burning everyone can get behind.
posted by Panjandrum at 10:35 PM on July 30, 2016 [9 favorites]
Both Democrat and Republican have been changing so rapidly and unpredictably that it seems an odd choice to focus on (vs., say, left-right or liberal-conservative)
Other things it occurs to me this could be gauging:
-How much you exaggerate or underplay your emotional responses to things
-How aware you are of primitive monkey-brain responses (vs. the mind mediating that response with rationality after the fact), or, alternatively, how often that primitive monkey-brain response is NOT mediated after the fact (perhaps a telling sign of conservatism in itself - allowing primitive emotions like fear and disgust to run their course unchecked)
An MRI gauging how the brain lights up to imagery is vastly different from this version of the test. For one, the imagery does not demand that you picture yourself in a particular situation. It merely shows you imagery. What your brain does (in a millisecond? Over a few seconds?) is recorded. It's the Clockwork Orange thing. You yourself only have a dim awareness of what your reaction is at any given moment. So much happens and changes. Whereas this trusts that you understand what you're feeling when you put yourself in a given situation and can rate that reaction along a 5-point scale. I have little confidence that my choices accurately reflect things. Seeing a man in the street with intestines exposed, stumbling out of an accident - as the awareness of what I'm seeing happens, am I allowing disgust to register? For how long? At what point do I spring into action to help, and control my disgust out of necessity?
posted by naju at 10:36 PM on July 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
Other things it occurs to me this could be gauging:
-How much you exaggerate or underplay your emotional responses to things
-How aware you are of primitive monkey-brain responses (vs. the mind mediating that response with rationality after the fact), or, alternatively, how often that primitive monkey-brain response is NOT mediated after the fact (perhaps a telling sign of conservatism in itself - allowing primitive emotions like fear and disgust to run their course unchecked)
An MRI gauging how the brain lights up to imagery is vastly different from this version of the test. For one, the imagery does not demand that you picture yourself in a particular situation. It merely shows you imagery. What your brain does (in a millisecond? Over a few seconds?) is recorded. It's the Clockwork Orange thing. You yourself only have a dim awareness of what your reaction is at any given moment. So much happens and changes. Whereas this trusts that you understand what you're feeling when you put yourself in a given situation and can rate that reaction along a 5-point scale. I have little confidence that my choices accurately reflect things. Seeing a man in the street with intestines exposed, stumbling out of an accident - as the awareness of what I'm seeing happens, am I allowing disgust to register? For how long? At what point do I spring into action to help, and control my disgust out of necessity?
posted by naju at 10:36 PM on July 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
Well, it got "Democrat" right, but 54% isn't proving much.
Some of the questions were weird. Does anyone find it disgusting to see someone eating an Apple with a knife and fork? I'd find it slightly odd, but not disgusting.
posted by mmoncur at 10:37 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
Some of the questions were weird. Does anyone find it disgusting to see someone eating an Apple with a knife and fork? I'd find it slightly odd, but not disgusting.
posted by mmoncur at 10:37 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
59% Democrat. I really didn't think I was at all easy to disgust. Huh.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 10:37 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 10:37 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
I just had to clean the inside of an old trash can today. Lots of maggots. I really got in there and scrubbed. The smell made me gag. I believe this threw of my results.
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 10:39 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Alluring Mouthbreather at 10:39 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
I was neutral on the paper vs fruit one. I like fruit plenty fine, but I also idly tear off pieces of blank paper and eat them sometimes when I'm not paying attention, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
posted by aubilenon at 10:40 PM on July 30, 2016 [15 favorites]
posted by aubilenon at 10:40 PM on July 30, 2016 [15 favorites]
This seems more along the lines of a Harry Potter sorting hat quiz than anything at all serious. Here's the actual study, which drew conclusions from neural responses (via fMRI data), and in which the researchers say, "As seen in Figure 2C, groups did not significantly differ in subjective ratings of disgusting, threatening, or pleasant pictures (also see Table S2). Also, there were no significant group differences on self-report measures except that the conservative group had marginally higher disgust sensitivity than the liberal group [t(54) = 1.711, p = 0.093; Figure S1B and Table S1].
I don't have any particular opinion about the original research, but this quiz thing definitely isn't representative of the original findings: "Disgusting images, especially those related to animal-reminder disgust (e.g., mutilated body), generate neural responses that are highly predictive of political orientation even though these neural predictors do not agree with participants’ conscious rating of the stimuli." (bolding mine).
posted by taz at 10:41 PM on July 30, 2016 [36 favorites]
I don't have any particular opinion about the original research, but this quiz thing definitely isn't representative of the original findings: "Disgusting images, especially those related to animal-reminder disgust (e.g., mutilated body), generate neural responses that are highly predictive of political orientation even though these neural predictors do not agree with participants’ conscious rating of the stimuli." (bolding mine).
posted by taz at 10:41 PM on July 30, 2016 [36 favorites]
For people interested in reading more about this topic, I highly recommend The Anatomy of Disgust by law professor William Ian Miller. It is fascinating and compulsively readable, which is not something you can say for a lot of legal scholarship.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 10:43 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 10:43 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I'm a nurse sooooooo, what goes through my mind during this test may not be the norm but:
"...why is there a human hand? Did they agree to having their hand displayed? Man this brings up heaps of bio-ethics questions."
"WHO ARE THESE DEVILS WHO HOVER ABOVE THE TOILET SEAT."
"But do they reach the toilet before they vomit? Or is it like, all over them."
"I would not knowingly eat food prepared by someone sick, wtf Typhoid Mary."
"But why are they taking that eye out? To clean it or to be awesome with a fucking glass eye out to like show a kid or something?"
"What does the urine smell like?"
"Only changes underwear once a week omg D: D: D:"
"But why were the ashes out? Like why could I touch them?!"
and lastly
"Who the fuck eats paper?"
If there is meant to be a corollary between disgust/discomfort and political leanings it would be interesting to give this test to a group of first year nursing students and then give it to them again after they had graduated. Like does being made to handle dead bodies and human shit make you more liberal? /research nurse
posted by supercrayon at 10:44 PM on July 30, 2016 [68 favorites]
"...why is there a human hand? Did they agree to having their hand displayed? Man this brings up heaps of bio-ethics questions."
"WHO ARE THESE DEVILS WHO HOVER ABOVE THE TOILET SEAT."
"But do they reach the toilet before they vomit? Or is it like, all over them."
"I would not knowingly eat food prepared by someone sick, wtf Typhoid Mary."
"But why are they taking that eye out? To clean it or to be awesome with a fucking glass eye out to like show a kid or something?"
"What does the urine smell like?"
"Only changes underwear once a week omg D: D: D:"
"But why were the ashes out? Like why could I touch them?!"
and lastly
"Who the fuck eats paper?"
If there is meant to be a corollary between disgust/discomfort and political leanings it would be interesting to give this test to a group of first year nursing students and then give it to them again after they had graduated. Like does being made to handle dead bodies and human shit make you more liberal? /research nurse
posted by supercrayon at 10:44 PM on July 30, 2016 [68 favorites]
I swear I'm not a robot. I type the text in the box every time they ask.
It types the text in the box or it gets the hose.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 10:44 PM on July 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
It types the text in the box or it gets the hose.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 10:44 PM on July 30, 2016 [4 favorites]
An MRI gauging how the brain lights up to imagery is vastly different from this version of the test. For one, the imagery does not demand that you picture yourself in a particular situation.
I thought it was testing whether I was a sociopath, or as pointed out, a replicant, and was feeling bad about my apparent lack of concern over things that were supposedly terrible. I have a hard time with these kinds of questions because I want to know the exact circumstances. I can't imagine reacting more strongly to just pictures, they're just pictures, but it would be interesting.
For some of the ones about "If you saw someone..." I thought "what do you mean saw someone, I do that" But yeah, if you vomit I'm going to have a problem.
On preview, pretty much what supercrayon said is what was running through my mind.
posted by bongo_x at 10:48 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I thought it was testing whether I was a sociopath, or as pointed out, a replicant, and was feeling bad about my apparent lack of concern over things that were supposedly terrible. I have a hard time with these kinds of questions because I want to know the exact circumstances. I can't imagine reacting more strongly to just pictures, they're just pictures, but it would be interesting.
For some of the ones about "If you saw someone..." I thought "what do you mean saw someone, I do that" But yeah, if you vomit I'm going to have a problem.
On preview, pretty much what supercrayon said is what was running through my mind.
posted by bongo_x at 10:48 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
Hm. Given that the Democrats have been a dead force in Australian politics for some years I guess I disagree with their conclusions about my voting preferences.
posted by the existence of stars below the horizon at 10:49 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by the existence of stars below the horizon at 10:49 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
Apparently the brain's political ideology is thoroughly exhausted by two parties as they exist in the early 21st century in one single country.
posted by Pyrogenesis at 10:50 PM on July 30, 2016 [9 favorites]
posted by Pyrogenesis at 10:50 PM on July 30, 2016 [9 favorites]
59% Dem, but I disagree with the limit of two choices, Dem or Repub. I am voting for Gary Johnson. I consider myself socially liberal and fiscally conservative. Maybe I should be eating paper to save money? Also, I don't get why I would care if someone else ate vanilla ice cream and ketchup. As long as they don't care that I eat peanut butter and mustard sandwiches, we are good.
posted by AugustWest at 10:50 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by AugustWest at 10:50 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
Didn't work for me at all. Pegged me as 64% Republican and I'm the most progressive person my (largely progressive) circle knows. (That doesn't mean I deserve a progressive award, just that none of my beliefs fall to the right of "very left.")
However, I gag at the sight of gravy and the feeling of stepping in mud and the sound of vomiting, would prefer never to encounter a non-human animal of *any* type anywhere but on a TV/device screen, and death oogs me out. (And it occurred to me that if I ate an apple with a knife and fork, I'd be better able to ensure there was no ickiness within, and from now on I'm going to eat all apples that way!)
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 10:52 PM on July 30, 2016 [6 favorites]
However, I gag at the sight of gravy and the feeling of stepping in mud and the sound of vomiting, would prefer never to encounter a non-human animal of *any* type anywhere but on a TV/device screen, and death oogs me out. (And it occurred to me that if I ate an apple with a knife and fork, I'd be better able to ensure there was no ickiness within, and from now on I'm going to eat all apples that way!)
posted by The Wrong Kind of Cheese at 10:52 PM on July 30, 2016 [6 favorites]
Um, or, I'm a nurse.
posted by eggkeeper at 10:53 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by eggkeeper at 10:53 PM on July 30, 2016 [1 favorite]
My brain is a Republican, 52%. What dirty slander! I've been working in progressive campaigns and for the Dems and Greens (my motto: Green where it's Deep Blue, Blue where it's Purple or Red) for twenty years.
There's more to political affiliation than hygienic reactions. There was nothing touching on issues of fairness, reciprocity, or allocation of resources, which I would argue is a core psychological component of political orientation. There's also nothing about altruism or empathy.
This is pure bunkum, another cheap and arbitrary internet poll.
posted by LeRoienJaune at 11:05 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
There's more to political affiliation than hygienic reactions. There was nothing touching on issues of fairness, reciprocity, or allocation of resources, which I would argue is a core psychological component of political orientation. There's also nothing about altruism or empathy.
This is pure bunkum, another cheap and arbitrary internet poll.
posted by LeRoienJaune at 11:05 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I suspect maybe the paper vs. fruit question was there to weed out results of people who were just clicking without really reading the questions
I'm guessing that it's useful to calibrate other responses, by gauging your strength of response, but it might also provide information in itself. I clicked "strongly agree" to that, because I eat fruit all the time and haven't eaten paper for years, but I don't think I clicked "strongly agree" on anything else. So I'm the person who does believe certain things strongly, but is more ambivalent about the sorts of things the rest of the quiz asks about. That may well be pretty revealing.
posted by howfar at 11:06 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I'm guessing that it's useful to calibrate other responses, by gauging your strength of response, but it might also provide information in itself. I clicked "strongly agree" to that, because I eat fruit all the time and haven't eaten paper for years, but I don't think I clicked "strongly agree" on anything else. So I'm the person who does believe certain things strongly, but is more ambivalent about the sorts of things the rest of the quiz asks about. That may well be pretty revealing.
posted by howfar at 11:06 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
I am a Democrat, 77% liberal. I'll take that, since Metafilter often makes me feel like I must seem more like William F, Buckley.
posted by 2N2222 at 11:07 PM on July 30, 2016 [9 favorites]
posted by 2N2222 at 11:07 PM on July 30, 2016 [9 favorites]
There was nothing touching on issues of fairness, reciprocity, or allocation of resources, which I would argue is a core psychological component of political orientation. There's also nothing about altruism or empathy.
Are there data to support this? I mean, it might well be true overall, but I know loads of left wing dicks and nice people who are right wing. It definitely feels like left wing people are more altruistic and empathetic, but maybe that's a simple effect of tribalism. I'm not saying you're wrong, but I'm not convinced that the things you perceive as central necessarily are.
posted by howfar at 11:10 PM on July 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
Are there data to support this? I mean, it might well be true overall, but I know loads of left wing dicks and nice people who are right wing. It definitely feels like left wing people are more altruistic and empathetic, but maybe that's a simple effect of tribalism. I'm not saying you're wrong, but I'm not convinced that the things you perceive as central necessarily are.
posted by howfar at 11:10 PM on July 30, 2016 [7 favorites]
I got Democrat, which is what I am, but the results only got that result barely.
Also, I spent much of my childhood eating paper.
posted by KChasm at 11:11 PM on July 30, 2016
Also, I spent much of my childhood eating paper.
posted by KChasm at 11:11 PM on July 30, 2016
74% Republican. Why did so many of the questions have to do with gross stuff? Why does being grossed out by maggots somehow equate me with being conservative? I am so confused.
posted by Hermione Granger at 11:13 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
posted by Hermione Granger at 11:13 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
Guys? I didn't know how to answer the one about the tortoise on his back in the desert. Why wouldn't I help?
posted by ricochet biscuit at 11:20 PM on July 30, 2016 [20 favorites]
posted by ricochet biscuit at 11:20 PM on July 30, 2016 [20 favorites]
It would certainly be interesting to see if this actually has any predictive power. If it were correct by a statistically significant amount, then it would presumably be measuring something, although, given that it's not clear what the methodology is, or whether there's any significantly considered methodology at all, it may well be impossible to pick out what that is.
posted by howfar at 11:22 PM on July 30, 2016
posted by howfar at 11:22 PM on July 30, 2016
78% democrat. That poor icky worm.
posted by Joey Michaels at 11:27 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Joey Michaels at 11:27 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
71% liberal.
Also, I've eaten a fair amount of paper, but it was almost entirely blotter acid.
posted by talking leaf at 11:29 PM on July 30, 2016 [12 favorites]
Also, I've eaten a fair amount of paper, but it was almost entirely blotter acid.
posted by talking leaf at 11:29 PM on July 30, 2016 [12 favorites]
You know who else was disgusted at the thought of drinking a bowl of his favorite soup if it had been stirred by a used but thoroughly washed flyswatter?
posted by obscure simpsons reference at 11:31 PM on July 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
posted by obscure simpsons reference at 11:31 PM on July 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
We keep a spoon on the counter. I have told my wife several times that I use it for the cat food, and let the dogs lick it clean afterwards. This does not seem to phase her at all, and uses it without hesitation. She thinks I'm too prissy.
posted by bongo_x at 11:38 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by bongo_x at 11:38 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
74% Republican. Why did so many of the questions have to do with gross stuff? Why does being grossed out by maggots somehow equate me with being conservative? I am so confused.
There's actually a fairly well-documented relationship between degree of disgust response and political alignment. See here, for instance. Helps explain a lot of the right wing's weird obsession with abortion, gender dysphoria, and butt stuff, and seems to play into the xenophobia too. (Hence the question, for instance, about ketchup on ice cream - that's pretty clearly a non-culturally-specific way of getting at a kneejerk othering response.)
posted by fifthrider at 11:42 PM on July 30, 2016 [10 favorites]
There's actually a fairly well-documented relationship between degree of disgust response and political alignment. See here, for instance. Helps explain a lot of the right wing's weird obsession with abortion, gender dysphoria, and butt stuff, and seems to play into the xenophobia too. (Hence the question, for instance, about ketchup on ice cream - that's pretty clearly a non-culturally-specific way of getting at a kneejerk othering response.)
posted by fifthrider at 11:42 PM on July 30, 2016 [10 favorites]
> "Guys? I didn't know how to answer the one about the tortoise on his back in the desert. Why wouldn't I help?"
That tortoise killed my family.
posted by kyrademon at 11:42 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
That tortoise killed my family.
posted by kyrademon at 11:42 PM on July 30, 2016 [5 favorites]
I got 53% Republican, I think it's because my response to the ketchup on vanilla ice cream question was "HANG THE LIZARD PERSON"
posted by invitapriore at 11:45 PM on July 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
posted by invitapriore at 11:45 PM on July 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
If a bird in your hand was in danger, but by turning over a tortoise in the desert you could save two birds in a bush, what would you do? Your answer reveals how much empathy you have for wildlife, and whether you'd support feral cat TNR programs.
posted by amtho at 11:46 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by amtho at 11:46 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
57% Dem. Pretty disgusted with myself that it's so low.
posted by Lyme Drop at 11:48 PM on July 30, 2016
posted by Lyme Drop at 11:48 PM on July 30, 2016
They didn't fully explore the envelope of disgust in this test.
How are we going to find out who the real, real lefties are?
"How would you feel when forced to lick a urinal with a dead baby fondling your genitals?" >Neutral.
posted by Auden at 11:50 PM on July 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
How are we going to find out who the real, real lefties are?
"How would you feel when forced to lick a urinal with a dead baby fondling your genitals?" >Neutral.
posted by Auden at 11:50 PM on July 30, 2016 [14 favorites]
Also: is anyone studying how to get people to make policy decisions (voting decisions, etc.) without being overly influenced by disgust reactions? That seems important.
Also: I think it's perfectly natural for people to feel disgust for other people sometimes (especially if we think they want to harm those we think are perfectly innocent, for example if they want to censure people for having qualities or preferences that don't cause obvious harm). This is clearly a different sort of disgust from that in the quiz, but it's still disgust, and it's visceral and difficult to overcome.
That protective impulse can lead to a lot of judgment. If we're judging people on a gut/disgust level, they tend not to listen to our reasons why they are incorrect in their understanding of foreign policy.
posted by amtho at 11:53 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
Also: I think it's perfectly natural for people to feel disgust for other people sometimes (especially if we think they want to harm those we think are perfectly innocent, for example if they want to censure people for having qualities or preferences that don't cause obvious harm). This is clearly a different sort of disgust from that in the quiz, but it's still disgust, and it's visceral and difficult to overcome.
That protective impulse can lead to a lot of judgment. If we're judging people on a gut/disgust level, they tend not to listen to our reasons why they are incorrect in their understanding of foreign policy.
posted by amtho at 11:53 PM on July 30, 2016 [2 favorites]
How would you feel when forced to lick a urinal with a dead baby fondling your genitals?"
I don't know if we want to rate our kinks on a public forum.
posted by bongo_x at 11:53 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
I don't know if we want to rate our kinks on a public forum.
posted by bongo_x at 11:53 PM on July 30, 2016 [3 favorites]
59% Dem, but [...] I consider myself socially liberal and fiscally conservative.
So, a Democrat, then.
posted by nom de poop at 12:11 AM on July 31, 2016 [6 favorites]
So, a Democrat, then.
posted by nom de poop at 12:11 AM on July 31, 2016 [6 favorites]
something that goes really well with good vanilla ice-cream is balsamic vinegar.
my local-not-chain groovy ice cream shop had a special tonight: strawberry balsamic with crushed black pepper. i jumped right on that shit.
77% dem fwiw.
posted by j_curiouser at 12:35 AM on July 31, 2016
my local-not-chain groovy ice cream shop had a special tonight: strawberry balsamic with crushed black pepper. i jumped right on that shit.
77% dem fwiw.
posted by j_curiouser at 12:35 AM on July 31, 2016
"Your brain is a Republican", 63/37%.
No, it isn't. I will fight you on this.
posted by JHarris at 12:47 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
No, it isn't. I will fight you on this.
posted by JHarris at 12:47 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
65% liberal - seems about right, but it's still just a game on the internet.
Like does being made to handle dead bodies and human shit make you more liberal?
In a way, I think it does. I've always been a leftie, but I think having children, and then later old people around me being sick and dying has profoundly changed my political opinions. There was a poet who wrote about how the most private and intimate things are also the most universal, and there is something about acknowledging that which has made me become a different sort of socialist than I was before. Not as purist, but more determined, I guess.
posted by mumimor at 12:55 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Like does being made to handle dead bodies and human shit make you more liberal?
In a way, I think it does. I've always been a leftie, but I think having children, and then later old people around me being sick and dying has profoundly changed my political opinions. There was a poet who wrote about how the most private and intimate things are also the most universal, and there is something about acknowledging that which has made me become a different sort of socialist than I was before. Not as purist, but more determined, I guess.
posted by mumimor at 12:55 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
48% / 52%. I wouldn't self-identify as a Democrat as much as "Rational"
posted by mikelieman at 12:57 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by mikelieman at 12:57 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
This "paper". Might it be impregnated with some sort of psychoactive substance? If so, then I'll save the orange for about 6 hours from now...
posted by mikelieman at 12:58 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
This "paper". Might it be impregnated with some sort of psychoactive substance? If so, then I'll save the orange for about 6 hours from now...
posted by mikelieman at 12:58 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
I'm as liberal as you can get, but there are things that are gross. Sorry, it has to be said. Also, context matters.
If I see a cockroach in someones house I'm grossed out. Not by the people (I've lived in Philly, you can't get away from the little vermin) but yuck. Also, I've worked in plenty of restaurants, both fly swatters and sick cooks should not be in the kitchen, that's how pandemics start. It's also true I prefer eating fruit to paper, but then I seem to be getting more than my share of roughage. Also, on some of the questions I thought neither answer fit, I see a man with his intestines out, I'm not disgusted, I'm alarmed, and dialing 911.
posted by evilDoug at 1:04 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
If I see a cockroach in someones house I'm grossed out. Not by the people (I've lived in Philly, you can't get away from the little vermin) but yuck. Also, I've worked in plenty of restaurants, both fly swatters and sick cooks should not be in the kitchen, that's how pandemics start. It's also true I prefer eating fruit to paper, but then I seem to be getting more than my share of roughage. Also, on some of the questions I thought neither answer fit, I see a man with his intestines out, I'm not disgusted, I'm alarmed, and dialing 911.
posted by evilDoug at 1:04 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
Wait, did someone color the piece of paper with one of those markers that smell like fruit? Mildly disgusted by lack of clarification on this obvious oversight.
posted by littlesq at 1:19 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by littlesq at 1:19 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
I got Republican, which, no. No, no no no no.
posted by OolooKitty at 1:37 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by OolooKitty at 1:37 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
Yes, I am much more Democrat than this quiz thinks, but probably a strong, negative reaction to the memory of having to work at my shitty job, while sick, out of fear of getting canned, skewed it at least a bit.
posted by skybluepink at 1:44 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by skybluepink at 1:44 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
We keep a spoon on the counter. I have told my wife several times that I use it for the cat food, and let the dogs lick it clean afterwards. This does not seem to phase her at all, and uses it without hesitation. She thinks I'm too prissy.
A friend of mine uses a big slotted spoon to scoop her kitty litter. The cat box is in a pantry off the kitchen and when she moved in she couldn't find her cat litter scooper, so when it was time to scoop the box she grabbed what was handy, a big plastic slotted spoon. After she used it once, she was like, "well this is my new cat litter scooper" and it stayed next to the cat box. Other people refuse to eat at her house after they've seen this, assuming that all of her cookingware has been tainted because she relegated a cooking spoon to cat box duty.
posted by peeedro at 2:07 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
A friend of mine uses a big slotted spoon to scoop her kitty litter. The cat box is in a pantry off the kitchen and when she moved in she couldn't find her cat litter scooper, so when it was time to scoop the box she grabbed what was handy, a big plastic slotted spoon. After she used it once, she was like, "well this is my new cat litter scooper" and it stayed next to the cat box. Other people refuse to eat at her house after they've seen this, assuming that all of her cookingware has been tainted because she relegated a cooking spoon to cat box duty.
posted by peeedro at 2:07 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
I think I'm way more liberal than the 54% it gauged me at: I've handled dead bodies and dead cats and thrown whole handfuls of my great-grandmother's ashes around. But I have a rat phobia. Maybe if the rat question had included a scale of volume of screaming/sobbing/running away instead of disgust, I might have skewed differently.
posted by tracicle at 2:13 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by tracicle at 2:13 AM on July 31, 2016
I am horrifically disgusted by people who hover over public toilet seats. I couldn't figure out how to answer that one.
posted by nat at 2:46 AM on July 31, 2016 [11 favorites]
posted by nat at 2:46 AM on July 31, 2016 [11 favorites]
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
Manly men. Men who eat steak with their face. Brawny carnivores who would rather eat their hat than a vegetable. RAWR!
posted by ActingTheGoat at 2:50 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Manly men. Men who eat steak with their face. Brawny carnivores who would rather eat their hat than a vegetable. RAWR!
posted by ActingTheGoat at 2:50 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
The question gave me pause, because it depends on which fruit we're talking about – I really hate bananas, so in that case, I'd rather eat paper. Then again, I like apples, and was eating apple slices with a fork while answering the test, so the weirdest question for me was whether I found it disgusting to see a person eating an apple with a knife and fork.
posted by martinrebas at 2:54 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
The question gave me pause, because it depends on which fruit we're talking about – I really hate bananas, so in that case, I'd rather eat paper. Then again, I like apples, and was eating apple slices with a fork while answering the test, so the weirdest question for me was whether I found it disgusting to see a person eating an apple with a knife and fork.
posted by martinrebas at 2:54 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
100% Republican since 1792
posted by Madame Defarge at 2:57 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by Madame Defarge at 2:57 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Your brain is a Republican: Conservative (57%)
Fuck you, brain! Get your shit together or I am having us both tasered.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 3:07 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
Fuck you, brain! Get your shit together or I am having us both tasered.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 3:07 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
This webapp is incorrect/misleading, because it reuses the Haidt scale, which is 0–100 based strictly on how many questions you answered/ranked as disgusting but tacks on a % for no good scientific reason (and every good provocative social media reason).
The mean disgust scores for 34,442 samples taken 2007–2010 in USA are:
41.8 (SD 15.1), Women: 45.5 (SD 14.9), Men 38 (SD: 14.5).
The higher the score, the more disgust. So 100 – 41.8 = 58.2 is the average political orientation. If you thought you scored a 58.2% Liberal on the app, you are average according to the Haidt disgust inventory.
I scored "76% Liberal". The various researchers seem pretty open in acknowledging that disgust came about for evolutionary reasons. Just because other people experience more disgust or because you experience disgust about anything at any cognitive/social level, doesn't mean it's necessarily good or bad. It's hard, but this kind of knowledge offers a reason to be more respectful of neurodiversity and such factors that people are basically born with.
posted by polymodus at 3:08 AM on July 31, 2016 [7 favorites]
The mean disgust scores for 34,442 samples taken 2007–2010 in USA are:
41.8 (SD 15.1), Women: 45.5 (SD 14.9), Men 38 (SD: 14.5).
The higher the score, the more disgust. So 100 – 41.8 = 58.2 is the average political orientation. If you thought you scored a 58.2% Liberal on the app, you are average according to the Haidt disgust inventory.
I scored "76% Liberal". The various researchers seem pretty open in acknowledging that disgust came about for evolutionary reasons. Just because other people experience more disgust or because you experience disgust about anything at any cognitive/social level, doesn't mean it's necessarily good or bad. It's hard, but this kind of knowledge offers a reason to be more respectful of neurodiversity and such factors that people are basically born with.
posted by polymodus at 3:08 AM on July 31, 2016 [7 favorites]
Mine came out exactly moderate, 50/50. I am both surprised and not surprised by this outcome. I think if people read my Twitter or heard me talk they would think I was super liberal. But I'm quite happy with the democratic platform and ticket - and as many people have pointed out the Democratic Party seems to be evolving to a new kind of Republican Party.
posted by like_neon at 3:09 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by like_neon at 3:09 AM on July 31, 2016
Weird. I got "your brain is 78% water". Who knew water could be so fucking political! Maybe if we weren't so wet our country wouldn't be so divided. That's why quidnunc kid is promising to thoroughly desiccate every American, by building a YUGE dehumidifier that we'll make the MERPEOPLE pay for. Vote #1!!!
posted by the quidnunc kid at 3:19 AM on July 31, 2016 [14 favorites]
posted by the quidnunc kid at 3:19 AM on July 31, 2016 [14 favorites]
Did anyone else have a Weird Moment where the responses switched from "agree/disagree" to "degree of disgust" and you spent an uncomfortable moment trying to decide whether you agreed with "You see maggots on a piece of meat"?
posted by DoctorFedora at 3:23 AM on July 31, 2016 [66 favorites]
posted by DoctorFedora at 3:23 AM on July 31, 2016 [66 favorites]
By the way it's standard statistics but also funny to know that 2 are dummy questions to exclude participants not paying attention or taking it seriously:
Drop all participants who did not answer 3 or 4 on question 12 ("I would rather eat a piece of fruit than a piece of paper "), and who did not answer 0 or 1 on question 16 ("You see a person eating an apple with a knife and fork.")
Which to me is indicative because it occurred to me while taking the test that in molecular gastronomy there are delicious foods that are edible "paper" to eat; this highlights how culture and experience mediate a participant's interpretation of a questionnaire.
posted by polymodus at 3:26 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Drop all participants who did not answer 3 or 4 on question 12 ("I would rather eat a piece of fruit than a piece of paper "), and who did not answer 0 or 1 on question 16 ("You see a person eating an apple with a knife and fork.")
Which to me is indicative because it occurred to me while taking the test that in molecular gastronomy there are delicious foods that are edible "paper" to eat; this highlights how culture and experience mediate a participant's interpretation of a questionnaire.
posted by polymodus at 3:26 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
I am proudly 89% Democrat and 11% sorry about that poor worm.
posted by mississippi at 3:46 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by mississippi at 3:46 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
60% Democrat and disagree that it's not considerably higher.
posted by triggerfinger at 4:58 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by triggerfinger at 4:58 AM on July 31, 2016
Hm. Given that the Democrats have been a dead force in Australian politics for some years I guess I disagree with their conclusions about my voting preferences.
I got "Republican". I mean, sure I voted yes in 1999 but I don't really care all that much, as long as they keep Charles well away from any kind of actual power.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 5:00 AM on July 31, 2016 [5 favorites]
I got "Republican". I mean, sure I voted yes in 1999 but I don't really care all that much, as long as they keep Charles well away from any kind of actual power.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 5:00 AM on July 31, 2016 [5 favorites]
It says I am 69% Republican. I must be the exception that proves the rule.
(Also, now I feel like I need to shower or something.)
posted by double bubble at 5:14 AM on July 31, 2016
(Also, now I feel like I need to shower or something.)
posted by double bubble at 5:14 AM on July 31, 2016
my brain is a perfect moderate?
guess i'd better go buy some hillary merch and harass anyone who mentions the green party
posted by indubitable at 5:27 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
guess i'd better go buy some hillary merch and harass anyone who mentions the green party
posted by indubitable at 5:27 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
I think a better way to present options in this quiz would be, "are you disgusted or do you feel empathy?" Without reading the source study, I suspect the disgust correlation has more to do with disgust being the primary reaction, rather than levels of disgust being relevant.
posted by marmago at 5:39 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by marmago at 5:39 AM on July 31, 2016
Sweet, I thought. Another political internet test that will surely pin me as a conservative again ... and yep:
54% conservative 46% liberal. Since my politics are actually extremely leftwing, this is always bothering me a little. Then I remember my racism* and misogyny* and back away slowly in embarrassment.
*although I 'm not quite sure how this could be messured by a visceral reaction/empathy(?) test like this.
ETA: In the end I come always down with: "I'm not a conservative damnit! I'm just an asshole!"
posted by ZeroAmbition at 6:00 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
54% conservative 46% liberal. Since my politics are actually extremely leftwing, this is always bothering me a little. Then I remember my racism* and misogyny* and back away slowly in embarrassment.
*although I 'm not quite sure how this could be messured by a visceral reaction/empathy(?) test like this.
ETA: In the end I come always down with: "I'm not a conservative damnit! I'm just an asshole!"
posted by ZeroAmbition at 6:00 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
I think it's textures that bother me more than the thing itself. The intestines, vomit, and maggot questions were "extreme/much disgust" but most of the others didn't bother me much, like the toilet seat and rat. I'd be interested to know the breakdown by question (regardless of politics).
Overall I was 55% democrat.
posted by AFABulous at 6:14 AM on July 31, 2016
Overall I was 55% democrat.
posted by AFABulous at 6:14 AM on July 31, 2016
Is it measuring actual, experienced disgust? Or is measuring tendency to describe disgust in more extreme or more moderated terms? Based on a test like this, how do you know the difference between "conservative" and "liberal" is "feels greater degree of disgust", as opposed to "moderates or squelches feelings of disgust, feels uncomfortable using strong language to describe disgust"?
Because I know I answered with the most extreme answer very few times. And I also know that I have this tendency with all online 1-5 scale quizzes I have taken, that I find it very difficult to answer 1 or 5.
posted by Cozybee at 6:24 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
Because I know I answered with the most extreme answer very few times. And I also know that I have this tendency with all online 1-5 scale quizzes I have taken, that I find it very difficult to answer 1 or 5.
posted by Cozybee at 6:24 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
Cool! Does this work the other way too? I mean if I ask people where they stand on women's reproductive rights will I be able to tell who'll pick up a dead cat? It'd be nice to finally have a way to plan dinner parties and maintain some sense of surprise with the menu.
(I personally think my grandma's recipe for monkey meat ice cream is just plain better with ketchup, but I accept there can be differences of opinion on the issue.)
posted by gusottertrout at 6:26 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
(I personally think my grandma's recipe for monkey meat ice cream is just plain better with ketchup, but I accept there can be differences of opinion on the issue.)
posted by gusottertrout at 6:26 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
91% liberal, which I think is the most liberal score I've seen reported here yet.
Basically, nothing squicks me out.
posted by briank at 6:28 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Basically, nothing squicks me out.
posted by briank at 6:28 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
85% Democrat.
LOL.
What this really indicates is I'm 85% non-germophobe
posted by iffthen at 6:30 AM on July 31, 2016
LOL.
What this really indicates is I'm 85% non-germophobe
posted by iffthen at 6:30 AM on July 31, 2016
I think my experience as a bedside nurse at a VA hospital may have skewed my results a bit.
posted by klarck at 6:34 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by klarck at 6:34 AM on July 31, 2016
This test loses it's predictive value when applied to health care workers. Hands, intestines, poo, maggots, vomit, urine, death ... meh.
posted by sudogeek at 6:41 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by sudogeek at 6:41 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
I don't think "disgust" is the first thing I feel when thinking about those who die, or seeing an injured person with a car accident or a worm that just died. Sorrow, anguish, pain, horror at their suffering....
I mean the stomach could get queasy at any of those things, but it is the pain of the heart that is so overwhelmingly taking over it's much an afterthought.
I wonder if people with less empathy (and less willingness to thus support policies of aid and understanding for fellow humans in need) is related to the focus on disgust when seeing injured, dying, death rather than empathy?
posted by xarnop at 6:42 AM on July 31, 2016 [5 favorites]
I mean the stomach could get queasy at any of those things, but it is the pain of the heart that is so overwhelmingly taking over it's much an afterthought.
I wonder if people with less empathy (and less willingness to thus support policies of aid and understanding for fellow humans in need) is related to the focus on disgust when seeing injured, dying, death rather than empathy?
posted by xarnop at 6:42 AM on July 31, 2016 [5 favorites]
Well, personally, when I saw those questions about touching a dead body/stepping on a worm, I just answered the question it gave me. It didn't say "How sad do you feel when you step on a worm", it asked me how digusted I'd be if that happened, and the truth is that I would find it disgusting to step on a worm and have to deal with the resulting mess.
But this never happens because I'm the adult lifting misplaced worms onto the grass with a twig and picking up snails by the shell so they don't get stepped on by anyone. (I'm still feeling guilty about the escargots I didn't really enjoy in Montmartre.)
posted by Rissa at 6:50 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
But this never happens because I'm the adult lifting misplaced worms onto the grass with a twig and picking up snails by the shell so they don't get stepped on by anyone. (I'm still feeling guilty about the escargots I didn't really enjoy in Montmartre.)
posted by Rissa at 6:50 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
I think you can feel disgust at seeing a man's intestines and still know that you need to call 911 right away.
Isn't disgust a lizard-brain thing, where empathy is a learned thing? Although it does seem, from comments here and from my own experience that a person can get used to things that previously would have been disgusting.
On the one hand, the occasional roach spotting no longer disgusts me, but I must have seen thousands of worms on the sidewalk over the course of a lifetime and they still freak me out.
posted by maggiemaggie at 6:51 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Isn't disgust a lizard-brain thing, where empathy is a learned thing? Although it does seem, from comments here and from my own experience that a person can get used to things that previously would have been disgusting.
On the one hand, the occasional roach spotting no longer disgusts me, but I must have seen thousands of worms on the sidewalk over the course of a lifetime and they still freak me out.
posted by maggiemaggie at 6:51 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
The reduction of political views to a context-free and ahistorical bi-polar spectrum seems inexplicable to me, except perhaps if it's an artifact of the total dominance of the two-party system in the US.
posted by clockzero at 6:51 AM on July 31, 2016 [6 favorites]
posted by clockzero at 6:51 AM on July 31, 2016 [6 favorites]
I think this should measure the amount of time you take to answer the question. For example, the used-but-washed fly swatter. It may initially seem disgusting, but if you think about it, if you've ever eaten outside, unless you are extremely squeamish, you eat food that has been touched by flies all the time. I've never seen anyone throw out their meal because a fly landed on it. So I think the answers are affected by whether you think rationally about your answer, or if you choose the knee-jerk response. I bet that maps pretty closely onto Democrat vs. Republican.
posted by AFABulous at 6:52 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by AFABulous at 6:52 AM on July 31, 2016
69℅ Democrat. I noticed that for the direct "rank disgust" questions, I was in fact distinguishing disgust from other feelings. For instance, the response to the rat is fear (rabies) and worry (city upkeep issues), so that's a slight disgust, but if they had asked how much I'd be bothered by it—a lot.
posted by seyirci at 6:57 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by seyirci at 6:57 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
59% conservative. Typing this on my iPad because of the question about my mother. I'll tell you about my mother, you fucking iMac.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 7:06 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 7:06 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
"27 strange non-political scenarios will appear."
Ha.
Not only are many of these scenarios not even "strange" - but many of them are highly "political".
"You see a rat in a public park (...because the public realm is starved for funding)."
"Your cook has a cold (...and to drag himself into work even though he's sick.")
posted by AsYouKnow Bob at 7:11 AM on July 31, 2016 [14 favorites]
Ha.
Not only are many of these scenarios not even "strange" - but many of them are highly "political".
"You see a rat in a public park (...because the public realm is starved for funding)."
"Your cook has a cold (...and to drag himself into work even though he's sick.")
posted by AsYouKnow Bob at 7:11 AM on July 31, 2016 [14 favorites]
As taz pointed out, the study says that self-reports are not predictive. The results are based on measured responses.
I always side-eye self-reported psychological quizzes because they require a degree of self-awareness that people just don't have. If you ask people to self-report their empathy levels, for example, you're going to get a lot of oblivious jerks reporting themselves as being astute observers of the human condition, and people who are a little less assured of their perceptions will rate themselves much lower. There's always a pretty obvious Dunning Kruger effect.
And how do you define disgust, and measure what is a slight, moderate, or extreme level? What if my extreme is your slight or vice versa? I would be weirded out by the jarred hands (there is this one scene in the movie L'Atalante). I would be startled by a rat running across my path. I would be hesitant to eat food prepared by someone who was sick and possibly contagious, on top of the concerns about snot getting in the food. Do any of those things count as disgust?
This is just astrology for people who watch TED Talks.
posted by ernielundquist at 7:12 AM on July 31, 2016 [7 favorites]
I always side-eye self-reported psychological quizzes because they require a degree of self-awareness that people just don't have. If you ask people to self-report their empathy levels, for example, you're going to get a lot of oblivious jerks reporting themselves as being astute observers of the human condition, and people who are a little less assured of their perceptions will rate themselves much lower. There's always a pretty obvious Dunning Kruger effect.
And how do you define disgust, and measure what is a slight, moderate, or extreme level? What if my extreme is your slight or vice versa? I would be weirded out by the jarred hands (there is this one scene in the movie L'Atalante). I would be startled by a rat running across my path. I would be hesitant to eat food prepared by someone who was sick and possibly contagious, on top of the concerns about snot getting in the food. Do any of those things count as disgust?
This is just astrology for people who watch TED Talks.
posted by ernielundquist at 7:12 AM on July 31, 2016 [7 favorites]
Going back and reading the other responses in the thread, it actually seems that test may be targeted towards that distinction ("disgusted" vs. "disturbed by this")? There are several replies here from people who thought they were ranked too much to the right, given their own conscious thoughts, beliefs and actions were demonstrably left. If that indeed is the case, I actually think the test may be unfair for not defining "disgust" as they use it, and letting the subjects interpret it broadly.
Our maybe they think the broad-interpretation itself is a sign of subconscious conservatism. I'm not sure I agree with that either. Ultimately, subconscious caution is an evolved trait. (If you haven't had children yet, you're less likely to after eating maggoty meat.) But actual political movements, social movements, and anything that can be described as "Democrat" and "Republican" is... Let's say a few levels above subconscious thought. Quite a few levels.
Now if they had ranked "conservative" and "less conservative..."
posted by seyirci at 7:12 AM on July 31, 2016
Our maybe they think the broad-interpretation itself is a sign of subconscious conservatism. I'm not sure I agree with that either. Ultimately, subconscious caution is an evolved trait. (If you haven't had children yet, you're less likely to after eating maggoty meat.) But actual political movements, social movements, and anything that can be described as "Democrat" and "Republican" is... Let's say a few levels above subconscious thought. Quite a few levels.
Now if they had ranked "conservative" and "less conservative..."
posted by seyirci at 7:12 AM on July 31, 2016
Isn't disgust a lizard-brain thing, where empathy is a learned thing?
Not entirely sure what you mean by "lizard-brain" (when I google it I get lots of different definitions including the brain stem and the amygdala which are not the same parts of the brain at all!) but as far as I know there's no evidence that disgust comes before empathy, either evolutionarily or developmentally. Regardless, they're both emotional responses that are partly instinctive and partly learnable/changeable.
posted by galaxy rise at 7:14 AM on July 31, 2016
Not entirely sure what you mean by "lizard-brain" (when I google it I get lots of different definitions including the brain stem and the amygdala which are not the same parts of the brain at all!) but as far as I know there's no evidence that disgust comes before empathy, either evolutionarily or developmentally. Regardless, they're both emotional responses that are partly instinctive and partly learnable/changeable.
posted by galaxy rise at 7:14 AM on July 31, 2016
I got 54% Republican. Now, that was disgusting. (100% Socialist/ Democrat)
posted by theora55 at 7:18 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by theora55 at 7:18 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
But my Trump score was really low. Probably would have been rock bottom, but I have small hands.
posted by theora55 at 7:26 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by theora55 at 7:26 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
I'm 73% liberal apparently, based on the theory that it's all about disgust, but I'm not sure that model is correct... I am that liberal, at least, but "disgust" isn't really even the right word for my reactions in some of the cases on the test. Seems too simplified a model of emotions, subjectively.
posted by saulgoodman at 7:47 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by saulgoodman at 7:47 AM on July 31, 2016
As taz pointed out, the study says that self-reports are not predictive
But the study linked in fifthrider's comment does find self-reports predictive (in 121 countries, no less.) In conclusion, humanity is a land of contrasts ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 7:52 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
But the study linked in fifthrider's comment does find self-reports predictive (in 121 countries, no less.) In conclusion, humanity is a land of contrasts ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 7:52 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
I came out very Republican, but I have a whopping gag reflex and gross out easily. I don't think I like this test.
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:53 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:53 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
Haha my trump score is you're the worst person. Now I'm proud
posted by mumimor at 7:54 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by mumimor at 7:54 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
25% conservative, 75% liberal. I am a lifelong Republican. Not impressed with you, test.
posted by Slithy_Tove at 7:57 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by Slithy_Tove at 7:57 AM on July 31, 2016
I hate these kinds of quizzes, because I always feel like the questions are super reductive and leave out all aorts of critical context. I knew I was in for more of that kind of moral reductivism as soon as I saw the first question, the hand-in-a-jar one. Like, I would really need to know more about that to be able to give an answer I could stand behind. Are we just assuming that the previous owner of the hand gave their informed, uncoerced consent to have it displayed in such a way? That to me makes the difference between "totally fine and actually pretty rad from an educational standpoint" and "absolutely not OK and somebody should be jailed or at least fired over this."
It annoys me because I run into survey questions like that all the time, not just in silly internet quizzes like this but in actual serious surveys conducted by employers, research institutions, government agencies and the like. "Here's an unanswerable question, now grade your response on this one-dimensional five-point scale." It's super unhelpful and frustrating, because people are inevitably goijg to interpret and answer questions like that in ways the researchers could never have intended.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 8:13 AM on July 31, 2016 [7 favorites]
It annoys me because I run into survey questions like that all the time, not just in silly internet quizzes like this but in actual serious surveys conducted by employers, research institutions, government agencies and the like. "Here's an unanswerable question, now grade your response on this one-dimensional five-point scale." It's super unhelpful and frustrating, because people are inevitably goijg to interpret and answer questions like that in ways the researchers could never have intended.
posted by Anticipation Of A New Lover's Arrival, The at 8:13 AM on July 31, 2016 [7 favorites]
I hate these kinds of quizzes, because I always feel like the questions are super reductive and leave out all aorts of critical context.
I tend to be the same way, and wasn't getting it at first. But in this case they weren't asking how you felt about the hand, they were asking if you were disgusted by the item itself, without context.
posted by bongo_x at 8:24 AM on July 31, 2016
I tend to be the same way, and wasn't getting it at first. But in this case they weren't asking how you felt about the hand, they were asking if you were disgusted by the item itself, without context.
posted by bongo_x at 8:24 AM on July 31, 2016
Chocolate shaped like poop is gross. Full stop.
posted by Going To Maine at 8:27 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by Going To Maine at 8:27 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
i just always assume that all online quizzes are machine learning exercises to give AI a better understanding of how our brains work.
posted by Conrad-Casserole at 8:31 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by Conrad-Casserole at 8:31 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
Chocolate shaped like poop is gross. Full stop.
Well, less so than poop shaped like chocolate, but OK.
posted by GenjiandProust at 8:53 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
Well, less so than poop shaped like chocolate, but OK.
posted by GenjiandProust at 8:53 AM on July 31, 2016 [3 favorites]
28% Conservative! Ugh!
Guess I still have some issues from childhood to work on.
posted by blairsyprofane at 8:53 AM on July 31, 2016
Guess I still have some issues from childhood to work on.
posted by blairsyprofane at 8:53 AM on July 31, 2016
51% Republican here. Bullshit. In 44 years of following your presidential politics, never would I have chosen the GOP candidate. Yep, 10-year-old me would've taken McGovern, and that was even before the full Watergate story broke.
Yeah, my low threshold of disgust is what did me in, but my squeamishness about maggoty garbage would be followed by disgust at shrinking public sanitation budgets. My reticence to eat what the sick cook's prepared would be redirected to consternation at lax public health standards and inadequate sick leave allowances. (The dead cat and cremains didn't faze me. Poor earthworm.)
And I'm voting #1 the quidnunc kid to play Trump's role in Hillary's debate rehearsals.
posted by hangashore at 9:04 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Yeah, my low threshold of disgust is what did me in, but my squeamishness about maggoty garbage would be followed by disgust at shrinking public sanitation budgets. My reticence to eat what the sick cook's prepared would be redirected to consternation at lax public health standards and inadequate sick leave allowances. (The dead cat and cremains didn't faze me. Poor earthworm.)
And I'm voting #1 the quidnunc kid to play Trump's role in Hillary's debate rehearsals.
posted by hangashore at 9:04 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Chocolate shaped like poop is gross. Full stop.
Restaurant patrons in Toronto beg to differ.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 9:09 AM on July 31, 2016
Restaurant patrons in Toronto beg to differ.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 9:09 AM on July 31, 2016
It says my brain is Republican. It lies.
posted by lhauser at 9:43 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by lhauser at 9:43 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Fascinating. It says my brain is Republican. But in actuality I am quite liberal.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 9:50 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 9:50 AM on July 31, 2016
Well, it found my brain to be much more balanced than my politics. But as hate and discrimination and lack of empathy and a peculiar brand of American Christianity continue to infiltrate "conservative" and Republican politics, I become ever more intolerant of anything but liberal progressive platforms in my politicians.
My own life, however, tends to be structured toward restraint, caution, and preserving existing conditions. Or fairly conservative, indeed.
posted by crush-onastick at 9:59 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
My own life, however, tends to be structured toward restraint, caution, and preserving existing conditions. Or fairly conservative, indeed.
posted by crush-onastick at 9:59 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
I famously have a stomach of steel and a lazy gag reflex, which may or may not derive from spending a lot of my life trying to live with an annoyingly acute sense of smell (a positive and a negative) and being accident prone. People call me to help them deal with the dead mouse or the giant cockroach and whatever, it's not a huge deal. I was also raised to accept hospitality in whatever form it came and to try anything once. So yeah, 82% dem. For the record, i am pretty disgusted by guns and pick up artists and confederate flags, but the quiz didn't ask about that.
posted by thivaia at 10:38 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by thivaia at 10:38 AM on July 31, 2016
I don't think this is, or should be framed as, an indicator of what your true politics are. I'm thinking of it more like genetics: you can carry the gene for a trait, but that's not always (or even usually?) the only factor that determines whether or not you'll express that trait. This kind of test probably works as a good predictor of what someone's politics are in the same way that a family history of cancer can indicate that a person is likely, but not guaranteed, to get cancer.
I'm wildly obsessive compulsive, among other craziness, and it didn't surprise me at all that I'm some 40% conservative according to this - if conservatism is correlated with squeamishness at unexpected things. But there are many more factors at play than just your tendency to find unfamiliar things gross. As adults many of us put in real effort to be aware of our implicit biases and so on, and that can ultimately be much more significant to our lives and our politics, even if general trends might indicate otherwise.
posted by teponaztli at 11:00 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
I'm wildly obsessive compulsive, among other craziness, and it didn't surprise me at all that I'm some 40% conservative according to this - if conservatism is correlated with squeamishness at unexpected things. But there are many more factors at play than just your tendency to find unfamiliar things gross. As adults many of us put in real effort to be aware of our implicit biases and so on, and that can ultimately be much more significant to our lives and our politics, even if general trends might indicate otherwise.
posted by teponaztli at 11:00 AM on July 31, 2016 [4 favorites]
I got 79% liberal/democrat/whatever (I wish people would stop using the two as synonyms), which is a bit of an underestimate, but not bad. Being in the medical field definitely skewed my answers. I see intestines (and pretty much any other organ you can think of) at work on a regular basis, so no big deal. And I have helped scatter the ashes of two friends, and it was not disgusting, but quite moving. So I wonder how much the liberal-conservative scale of the test is shifted by life experiences. Assuming that more disgust indicates more conservative, I am pretty sure a lot of conservatives are fishermen and hunters, who wouldn't be bothered by a lot of the questions either.
posted by TedW at 11:08 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by TedW at 11:08 AM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Also, with the mix of positive and negative questions I found it easy to give the answer opposite to what I intended if I didn't read the question carefully. I realize it is important to mix things up, but another potential source of error.
posted by TedW at 11:15 AM on July 31, 2016
posted by TedW at 11:15 AM on July 31, 2016
I suppose, then, that this device, inspired by Marcel Duchamp's "Fountain", could be used as a liberal-detection machine.
posted by panglos at 11:21 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by panglos at 11:21 AM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
Sounds like I should put up my web quiz that asks for measurements of various dimensions of your body and tells you what percentage male and female you are.
posted by Gilgamesh's Chauffeur at 12:01 PM on July 31, 2016
posted by Gilgamesh's Chauffeur at 12:01 PM on July 31, 2016
70% Democrat. Not nearly enough. Gotta have a long talk with my brain.
posted by Splunge at 12:17 PM on July 31, 2016
posted by Splunge at 12:17 PM on July 31, 2016
I put in all that time and effort, and end up with a Conservative Corporatist/Liberal Corporatist score? Talk about false choice!
This is what our "first past the post" voting system optimizes for... bad binary choices... it needs to change, ideally before automation reduces the bottom 99% of us to worthless.
posted by MikeWarot at 1:13 PM on July 31, 2016
This is what our "first past the post" voting system optimizes for... bad binary choices... it needs to change, ideally before automation reduces the bottom 99% of us to worthless.
posted by MikeWarot at 1:13 PM on July 31, 2016
I have had human ashes thrown on me during a performance. It wasn't a big deal. I have also found garbage cans lined with maggots and seen dead rats in the street. If I had to carry a friend's dead cat, I would be more sad than disgusted, especially, since, if the friend wasn't carrying their own cat, something pretty terrible must have happened. The monkey question was ridiculous. There are very few things that I couldn't come up with an outlandish scenario for; I have been reading internet comments for years. I mean, let's say SPACE HITLER threatened to blow up a school bus full of future cancer researchers if I didn't eat the damned monkey. He'd probably make me do it within 24 hours, too....
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:52 PM on July 31, 2016
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:52 PM on July 31, 2016
Montague points out that we’re not necessarily hardwired to respond on instinct alone. He uses height as an analogy.
“Genetics predetermines height — but not fully,” Montague said. “Nutrition, sleep, and starvation can all change someone’s ultimate height. But tall people’s children tend to be tall, and that’s a kind of starting point. If we can begin to understand that some automatic reactions to political issues may be simply that — reactions — then we might take the temperature down a bit in the current boiler of political discourse.”
People are unique among animals in their degree of cognitive control. Montague calls it a behavioral superpower.
“People can deny their biological instincts for an idea — think of hunger strikes for political reasons,” Montague said. “That requires a high degree of cognitive control, and that’s the point.”
The takeaway message for Election Day?
“Think, don’t just react,” Montague said. “But no one needs neuroscience to know that’s a good idea.”--2014 MRI study
I like this take-away, which some commenters have pointed out already. Your instinctive reactions don't have to define you as a person. What this app correlates with is just that, your disgust sensitivity. Whereas regardless of where we each are on the political spectrum, we can better ourselves in being more mindful and aware.
posted by polymodus at 1:55 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
“Genetics predetermines height — but not fully,” Montague said. “Nutrition, sleep, and starvation can all change someone’s ultimate height. But tall people’s children tend to be tall, and that’s a kind of starting point. If we can begin to understand that some automatic reactions to political issues may be simply that — reactions — then we might take the temperature down a bit in the current boiler of political discourse.”
People are unique among animals in their degree of cognitive control. Montague calls it a behavioral superpower.
“People can deny their biological instincts for an idea — think of hunger strikes for political reasons,” Montague said. “That requires a high degree of cognitive control, and that’s the point.”
The takeaway message for Election Day?
“Think, don’t just react,” Montague said. “But no one needs neuroscience to know that’s a good idea.”--2014 MRI study
I like this take-away, which some commenters have pointed out already. Your instinctive reactions don't have to define you as a person. What this app correlates with is just that, your disgust sensitivity. Whereas regardless of where we each are on the political spectrum, we can better ourselves in being more mindful and aware.
posted by polymodus at 1:55 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
I have a pretty strong sense of order and "this should not touch that." I'm unapologetic about it, because we do still live in a world where you can die from infections and contamination.
But I also actually have a pretty strong stomach for vomit-related stuff, even as I'm still completely grossed out by it. (I'm writing this from a hospital room next to my husband, who was endlessly vomiting earlier.) I scored 63 percent or so conservative, and that's not really accurate. I am conservative in the sense that I'm cautious in my life choices, but I also value spontaneity, even if it doesn't always have a huge place in my life. I certainly don't identify with the motley group whose only common ground is that they feel like racism and sexism and homophobia and transphobia and union-busting and tearing down regulations and building walls against other people and countries are OK and/or justified by their religious texts.
That's the thing, though: It actually makes no sense to conflate distrust of contamination with support for a party that wants to bring back the days of no regulation in terms of food and industrial safety.
posted by limeonaire at 2:06 PM on July 31, 2016
But I also actually have a pretty strong stomach for vomit-related stuff, even as I'm still completely grossed out by it. (I'm writing this from a hospital room next to my husband, who was endlessly vomiting earlier.) I scored 63 percent or so conservative, and that's not really accurate. I am conservative in the sense that I'm cautious in my life choices, but I also value spontaneity, even if it doesn't always have a huge place in my life. I certainly don't identify with the motley group whose only common ground is that they feel like racism and sexism and homophobia and transphobia and union-busting and tearing down regulations and building walls against other people and countries are OK and/or justified by their religious texts.
That's the thing, though: It actually makes no sense to conflate distrust of contamination with support for a party that wants to bring back the days of no regulation in terms of food and industrial safety.
posted by limeonaire at 2:06 PM on July 31, 2016
I think the word "bother" is a bad term to use for this. I was "bothered" by a bunch of those things, but out of empathy rather than disgust.
It said I was slightly Republican. I am very much not.
posted by moira at 2:29 PM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
It said I was slightly Republican. I am very much not.
posted by moira at 2:29 PM on July 31, 2016 [2 favorites]
Disgust made us human - "Our ancestors reacted to parasites with overwhelming revulsion, wiring the brain for morals, manners, politics and laws"
posted by the man of twists and turns at 2:34 PM on July 31, 2016
posted by the man of twists and turns at 2:34 PM on July 31, 2016
The only two results are Democrat and Republican? Garbage.
It'll never be correct for tons of people. Even if it thinks I'm 80% this and 20% that, its 100% wrong. Always.
posted by blackfly at 2:42 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
It'll never be correct for tons of people. Even if it thinks I'm 80% this and 20% that, its 100% wrong. Always.
posted by blackfly at 2:42 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
My brain is a republican!
My liver just went green!
My armpit's liberal bias
Is the worst you've ever seen!
My ventricles can't get along
One's "left", and one is "right".
The chambers of my heart
Are always itchin for a fight!
My knee's a libertarian,
My bladder is a red.
My pancreas loves Bernie
But I've got a Clinton head!
So various, the politics,
From crown down to my rump.
Yet when my bowels produce a shit -
It's pure Donald Trump.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 3:03 PM on July 31, 2016 [13 favorites]
My liver just went green!
My armpit's liberal bias
Is the worst you've ever seen!
My ventricles can't get along
One's "left", and one is "right".
The chambers of my heart
Are always itchin for a fight!
My knee's a libertarian,
My bladder is a red.
My pancreas loves Bernie
But I've got a Clinton head!
So various, the politics,
From crown down to my rump.
Yet when my bowels produce a shit -
It's pure Donald Trump.
posted by the quidnunc kid at 3:03 PM on July 31, 2016 [13 favorites]
Someone should poll visitors to the corpse flowers about who they're voting for.
posted by AFABulous at 3:05 PM on July 31, 2016
posted by AFABulous at 3:05 PM on July 31, 2016
I wish this survey acknowledged "economic disgust". It is where most of my disgust originates now and I think it's quite a feat of what's-that-word-in-psychology-for-elevating-a-neurosis-away-from-elemental-subconcious issues?—that word, myself.
posted by sylvanshine at 6:45 PM on July 31, 2016
posted by sylvanshine at 6:45 PM on July 31, 2016
Also, I didn't see an option on this internet survey for VERY DISGUST so I'm not sure about response validity.
posted by sylvanshine at 6:48 PM on July 31, 2016
posted by sylvanshine at 6:48 PM on July 31, 2016
Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
My cat for one.
posted by HiroProtagonist at 7:39 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
My cat for one.
posted by HiroProtagonist at 7:39 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
'Your brain is a Republican'.
It's so not. Trust me.
posted by Salamander at 11:38 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
It's so not. Trust me.
posted by Salamander at 11:38 PM on July 31, 2016 [1 favorite]
76% Voight-Kampff, 24% Mein Kampf.
posted by tardigrade at 12:00 AM on August 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
posted by tardigrade at 12:00 AM on August 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
74% Republican. Not in the slightest.
Although I am more likely to pick an extreme answer (very likely or very unlikely) in a likert scale. I wonder if that may be linked to Republican views?
posted by daybeforetheday at 1:25 AM on August 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
Although I am more likely to pick an extreme answer (very likely or very unlikely) in a likert scale. I wonder if that may be linked to Republican views?
posted by daybeforetheday at 1:25 AM on August 1, 2016 [2 favorites]
I thought this looked familiar! The Dalai Lama, in Essence of the Heart Sutra points out:
From these examples (food disgust and aging) we can see the degree to which our own attitudes and perceptions make a difference in how we experience a given situation. Our attitudes reflect thoughts and emotions, and our thoughts and emotions reflect the two principle drives: attraction and Repulsion. (...) These basic dynamics of attraction and repulsion form the basis of our engagement with the world.
posted by cleroy at 6:49 AM on August 1, 2016
From these examples (food disgust and aging) we can see the degree to which our own attitudes and perceptions make a difference in how we experience a given situation. Our attitudes reflect thoughts and emotions, and our thoughts and emotions reflect the two principle drives: attraction and Repulsion. (...) These basic dynamics of attraction and repulsion form the basis of our engagement with the world.
posted by cleroy at 6:49 AM on August 1, 2016
I honestly thought this quiz was measuring empathy (= liberal) rather than disgust, until I got to the explanation.
posted by the_blizz at 6:58 AM on August 1, 2016
posted by the_blizz at 6:58 AM on August 1, 2016
My brain apparently is Republican, but it's going to have a nasty surprise come November.
posted by corb at 7:34 AM on August 1, 2016 [4 favorites]
posted by corb at 7:34 AM on August 1, 2016 [4 favorites]
>> I honestly thought this quiz was measuring empathy (= liberal)
I thought it was a two axis test (empathy and disgust). The Voight-Kampff people were obviously tweaking to that, too. There is some interesting connection between those factors. I'd guess that conservative vs. liberal is a measure how how widely you extend your empathy circle and similarities of disgust (culture) define who is inside one's own circle.
posted by cleroy at 7:52 AM on August 1, 2016
I thought it was a two axis test (empathy and disgust). The Voight-Kampff people were obviously tweaking to that, too. There is some interesting connection between those factors. I'd guess that conservative vs. liberal is a measure how how widely you extend your empathy circle and similarities of disgust (culture) define who is inside one's own circle.
posted by cleroy at 7:52 AM on August 1, 2016
This "paper". Might it be impregnated with some sort of psychoactive substance? If so, then I'll save the orange for about 6 hours from now...
BTW, Happy Birthday Jerry Garcia. (b. 1942, d. 1995)
posted by mikelieman at 8:13 AM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
BTW, Happy Birthday Jerry Garcia. (b. 1942, d. 1995)
posted by mikelieman at 8:13 AM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
Soooo 100% of garbagemen, nurses, doctors, plumbers, and crime scene cleanup crews are Democrats. Good to know.
posted by applemeat at 9:44 AM on August 1, 2016
posted by applemeat at 9:44 AM on August 1, 2016
I really hate bananas, so in that case, I'd rather eat paper.
There are two of us!
posted by gurple at 10:12 AM on August 1, 2016
There are two of us!
posted by gurple at 10:12 AM on August 1, 2016
51% democrat. I consider my self moderate and centrist but probably vote much more liberal than this suggests.
posted by ShakeyJake at 10:30 AM on August 1, 2016
posted by ShakeyJake at 10:30 AM on August 1, 2016
The most depressing part of this site is the page after the "Do you agree or disagree with your results?" screen (I disagreed!), where it offers craptacular Clinton and Trump t-shirts for sale, which attempt to distill the "issues" at stake in the campaign.
posted by psoas at 11:12 AM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by psoas at 11:12 AM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
78% liberal. Not squeamish about many things that bother other people - I find maggots rather cute; I just don't like the smell of what they usually feed on.
Someone should take the test and answer "I am not disgusted by ANYTHING" to these questions, and find out if they're set to 100% liberal.
posted by ErisLordFreedom at 3:24 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
Someone should take the test and answer "I am not disgusted by ANYTHING" to these questions, and find out if they're set to 100% liberal.
posted by ErisLordFreedom at 3:24 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
Yep, it says you're a Democrat, 100% liberal.
posted by naju at 4:58 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by naju at 4:58 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
I got 90% liberal, but my friend got 60% conservative. Would her hypochondria possibly be throwing this off?
posted by gucci mane at 9:40 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by gucci mane at 9:40 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
It said I'm a Republican. Uh, no. The tests I've taken which are based on political issues always place me far to the left of Gandhi, and pretty much everyone else in the whole world.
posted by MexicanYenta at 10:43 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
posted by MexicanYenta at 10:43 PM on August 1, 2016 [1 favorite]
haha things you find out about yourself
I'm only mildly disgusted if I had to pick a dead cat up with my bare hands, but seeing someone put ketchup on vanilla icecream? Much disgust
65% democrat, like I thought.
posted by numaner at 8:31 PM on August 2, 2016
I'm only mildly disgusted if I had to pick a dead cat up with my bare hands, but seeing someone put ketchup on vanilla icecream? Much disgust
65% democrat, like I thought.
posted by numaner at 8:31 PM on August 2, 2016
Someone should take the test and answer "I am not disgusted by ANYTHING" to these questions, and find out if they're set to 100% liberal.
I took it a few times fiddling around with the answers, and yes, if you are never disgusted you are 100% Democrat, and if you are always disgusted you are 100% Republican. Somehow I missed the opportunity to buy t-shirts. It makes sense that this is a marketing thing rather than an actual study, since it is so easy to game.
posted by TedW at 8:45 PM on August 2, 2016
I took it a few times fiddling around with the answers, and yes, if you are never disgusted you are 100% Democrat, and if you are always disgusted you are 100% Republican. Somehow I missed the opportunity to buy t-shirts. It makes sense that this is a marketing thing rather than an actual study, since it is so easy to game.
posted by TedW at 8:45 PM on August 2, 2016
ketchup on vanilla icecream?
That's basically the Pizza Ice Cream at Little Baby's and it's great. Okay, they add a little oregano.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 9:52 PM on August 2, 2016
That's basically the Pizza Ice Cream at Little Baby's and it's great. Okay, they add a little oregano.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 9:52 PM on August 2, 2016
Personality measures for moral judgments have become one of my research interests this summer, so this post is pretty topical for me.
I took the quiz and scored 52 / 48, "Democrat" but squarely middle-of-the-road. The prediction seems to be that, based on personality factors, I'd be something like a moderate Democrat, who votes for center-left policies but is culturally somewhat conservative. But I would put myself way out on the cultural "left" fringe -- in the policies and leaders I vote for, the experiences I enjoy, the values I affirm.
I don't think I'm entirely self-deluded in this. I think my cultural and political judgments are not significantly motivated by disgust, actually. I'm a neophile. The research on disgust and politics (etc.) seems kind of right. I experience plenty of disgust, so the model fails on that score. But I don't find my tastes and judgments to be ultimately led by disgust, which is maybe where the model tells true. The disgust scales in the link, however, are failing to capture that nuance, if that is indeed the story.
I've hinted at a possible way to reconcile the data: if you have disgust, but you don't reflectively endorse it, don't let it lead you, then you are a bit like the person in the simpler model who doesn't have disgust at all.
I saw an early version of this paper advancing an argument like that. The experimental design is meant to argue that disgust motivates conservative judgments, mediated by the tendency to re-appraise your reactions, thought to be an emotional regulation skill. So (says the paper), folks with high disgust and low re-appraisal will give more conservative judgments. Folks with high disgust but high re-appraisal will be more like me -- the disgust reaction comes and goes but doesn't determine the judgment.
It's an appealing model. But (and I haven't re-read the paper) the theory now has an awful lot of moving parts. Could it be that the {disgust} x {emotional regulation} interaction determines a lot of political / moral judgments? Sure. But I generally think things are a bit more complicated than that.
posted by grobstein at 9:50 AM on August 3, 2016 [2 favorites]
I took the quiz and scored 52 / 48, "Democrat" but squarely middle-of-the-road. The prediction seems to be that, based on personality factors, I'd be something like a moderate Democrat, who votes for center-left policies but is culturally somewhat conservative. But I would put myself way out on the cultural "left" fringe -- in the policies and leaders I vote for, the experiences I enjoy, the values I affirm.
I don't think I'm entirely self-deluded in this. I think my cultural and political judgments are not significantly motivated by disgust, actually. I'm a neophile. The research on disgust and politics (etc.) seems kind of right. I experience plenty of disgust, so the model fails on that score. But I don't find my tastes and judgments to be ultimately led by disgust, which is maybe where the model tells true. The disgust scales in the link, however, are failing to capture that nuance, if that is indeed the story.
I've hinted at a possible way to reconcile the data: if you have disgust, but you don't reflectively endorse it, don't let it lead you, then you are a bit like the person in the simpler model who doesn't have disgust at all.
I saw an early version of this paper advancing an argument like that. The experimental design is meant to argue that disgust motivates conservative judgments, mediated by the tendency to re-appraise your reactions, thought to be an emotional regulation skill. So (says the paper), folks with high disgust and low re-appraisal will give more conservative judgments. Folks with high disgust but high re-appraisal will be more like me -- the disgust reaction comes and goes but doesn't determine the judgment.
It's an appealing model. But (and I haven't re-read the paper) the theory now has an awful lot of moving parts. Could it be that the {disgust} x {emotional regulation} interaction determines a lot of political / moral judgments? Sure. But I generally think things are a bit more complicated than that.
posted by grobstein at 9:50 AM on August 3, 2016 [2 favorites]
A complicating factor might be that even a very good effect size for the influence of disgust on politics is minuscule compared to the assumptions being made by this quiz.
So in the model of the paper I linked, IIRC moving from the very bottom to the very top of the disgust scale is enough to make you 1 point more conservative on a 7-point scale.
Depending on the sample, this could be a very convincing effect -- it could be enough to convince you the relationship is real ("statistically significant"). But it doesn't remotely establish that disgust is the one secret key to your political orientation, as in the pop version presented in the linked quiz.
In keeping with the strength of the actual effect, maybe the quiz results should not range from "100% Democrat" to "100% Republican," but something like "60% Democrat" to "60% Republican."
SORRY INTERNET QUIZZES
posted by grobstein at 5:00 PM on August 3, 2016 [1 favorite]
So in the model of the paper I linked, IIRC moving from the very bottom to the very top of the disgust scale is enough to make you 1 point more conservative on a 7-point scale.
Depending on the sample, this could be a very convincing effect -- it could be enough to convince you the relationship is real ("statistically significant"). But it doesn't remotely establish that disgust is the one secret key to your political orientation, as in the pop version presented in the linked quiz.
In keeping with the strength of the actual effect, maybe the quiz results should not range from "100% Democrat" to "100% Republican," but something like "60% Democrat" to "60% Republican."
SORRY INTERNET QUIZZES
posted by grobstein at 5:00 PM on August 3, 2016 [1 favorite]
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Really wondering who out there would rather eat a piece of paper than a piece of fruit.
posted by town of cats at 9:59 PM on July 30, 2016 [61 favorites]