Study: Across all ideological groups, higher cognitive ability and intellectual humility predicts support for free speech

Freedom of Speech: A Right for Everybody, or Only for Like-Minded People? (Heterodox Academy): Freedom of speech is often considered key to a well-functional democracy. In many countries, freedom of speech is considered a more important democratic value than regular elections. But do people genuinely believe in the virtues of open debates by supporting freedom of speech for every social group? Or do they support free speech only for their own groups? In a recently published paper in Social Psychological and Personality Science, we aimed to answer these questions, and we sought to explore whether higher cognitive ability was associated with more principled positions on free speech. We expected that people with higher cognitive abilities would be more inclined to embrace the open exchange of ideas, wherein viewpoints can be scrutinized and challenged in order to foster informed decision making and knowledge… The results do suggest that individuals with higher cognitive ability are more appreciative of the free flow of divergent ideas by groups at various places on the ideological spectrum. Indeed, even when these groups voice ideas that they don’t like. The Study: Disliked but Free to Speak: Cognitive Ability Is Related to Supporting Freedom of Speech for Groups Across the Ideological Spectrum (Social Psychological and Personality Science): Abstract: Freedom of speech for all citizens is often considered as a cornerstone of democratic societies. In three studies, we exami...
Source: SharpBrains - Category: Neuroscience Authors: Tags: Cognitive Neuroscience Education & Lifelong Learning brain riddles Brain Teasers cognitive-abilities cognitive-ability cognitive-performance freedom of speech intellectual humility intergroup attitudes prejudice Source Type: blogs