Again these are our stereotypes, but now there is a deeper psychological explanation for these predictable tastes and attitudes. It's human nature to crave certainty and structure. But individuals crave security to varying degrees, depending on how fearful they are. People who are the most fearful see safety in stability and hierarchy, where more emotionally secure people can tolerate some chaos and unpredictability in their lives. The psychologists gathered data from 12 different countries to test this out, and they found that conservative politics were inextricably linked to several measures of emotional insecurity: intolerance of ambiguity, need for structure, desire for closure, and so forth. They also found that conservatives had a more intense existential fear of death.

So what does all this have to do with my messy office? Another of Jost's colleagues, Dana Carney of Harvard, actually went into people's offices and bedrooms to probe the "secret lives" of liberals and conservatives, and found dramatic differences. The conservatives' rooms were not only tidy and orderly, they were full of utilitarian stuff like cleaning supplies, calendars and postage stamps. The liberals' rooms were painted in bold colors and cluttered with books and art and travel brochures. The Red rooms, if you will, were places to hole up and be safe, while the Blue rooms felt more like staging areas for exploration.

For more insights into the quirks of human nature, visit "We're Only Human…" at www.psychologicalscience.org/onlyhuman .

© 2008