So from the abstract, they took a big survey looking at a bunch of more general personality traits, theorized that certain combinations bespoke psychopathy, and analyzed the survey to see which states those combinations predominate in?

Sounds shaky.

Also "which is primarily found in" X region? Is that dressing up "the average is 14% but in this region it's 15% which is the greatest upward deviation from the national mean anywhere", the basis of all those clickbaity state maps?

I've long recognized that most statistics are garbage, but I think the worst statistics come from rolling up a bunch of other measures using some arbitrary formula to build an index alleged to explain some broader phenomenon onto which can be projected some deeper meaning. That's how you wind up with a situation where Maine is ranked #2 in psychopaths and, next door in New Hampshire, which is not so different from Maine, the ranking is 27.

All the tax-evaders bring down the average.

I was surprised they thought they could get statistically reliable results for every individual state, but here's the article about the underlying data (PDF) - it combines multiple large surveys, most of which have Ns in the hundreds of thousands, although all of those were self-selected online surveys, and one which was random-digit dial with N=18,182.

So they probably have enough datapoints for each state, but that raises more questions about the underlying reliability of all those data. In the four online surveys, 57-69% of the respondents were under 25 years old. One of them was a Facebook app that ran from 2008-2010.

Shaky but so viral and also citable!

Maine on the other hand, is rural and psychopathic, which is probably Stephen King's fault.

Hey, he reports, you decide!

Were the data-capturers double-blind?

So they probably have enough datapoints for each state, but that raises more questions about the underlying reliability of all those data.

Reliance on online surveys suggests that availability of rural broadband may be an issue that could throw off the results here. The NH rural broadband situation is pretty bad, but my impression is that Maine's is worse.

Good point. And 2010 is the most recent year of any of the survey data (some started 1999), so a lot of this is when internet addiction was much less prevalent.

From the highlights of the political bias paper:

• Participants believe politically like-minded others are better at unrelated tasks.

• They turn to the politically like-minded even when others are more accurate.

• Participants are more influenced by politically like-minded others on those issues.

I think people inappropriately generalize individual behavior from studies like this - and particularly my behavior, which is always above reproach.*

But I will totally cop to this. If you voted for Trump, I have a hard time trusting your judgment on anything. And of course people are going to be averse to interaction with people they find to be obnoxious or otherwise awful.

*I know, I know.

I did think the political bias paper was the more interesting of the two, even if less clickbaity. But I found them while in the grip of screaming boredom listening to a Slovenian philosopher expounding the differences between post humanism and trans humanism. I suppose I could have made an earnest more-of-a-comment-than-a-question-really to the effect that "Transhumanists are humanists too" but it seemed more productive to fossick round the social science web.

If I look at post modernism and decide it's not for me, is that preview modernism?

Can I just say that NW's unprofessional avoidant behavior is consistently a boon to the blog.

Where does Florida end up on the psychopathy scale? Unless it's at or near the top I'd have to say the study is worthless. Sorry, but I have my priors.

Alligators have neither landlines nor broadband. Not an excuse, ok, but an explanation.

Do your priors account for Florida public records transparency law?

Not until they release the Robert Kraft tape.

1

Yeah, it looks real shady. Not surprising that DC has the most city mouse personality of any state.

I have definitely gone looking through youtube accounts for people with what I've found to be helpful tech videos (like how to replace a drive on a particular laptop model), not because I think their political views make the video less useful but because I'd rather not send someone a link to an extremist who happens to also be good with computers if I can avoid it.

I heard myself saying today how good it was "that the Telegraph splashed with the pee tape" and then wondering if I should have phrased it differently.

But it is noteworthy, still, that the British secret service took the Steele dossier very seriously very quickly but bottled out of telling Theresa May about it.

There is not a better way to phrase that.

I would like to make use of the fact that Cass Sunstein is one of the authors of the second paper, but I'm afraid that would just be making his point.

21. Holy shit. I'll cop to that, too! I now realize that I looked at the authors, saw Sunstein there, and said to myself, "What bullshit is this?"

I also have issues with cluster analysis, but really don't want to read the methods of a paper cited in one of these papers to see what was done.

"low extraversion, very low agreeableness and conscientiousness, very high neuroticism, and moderately high openness"

Why are they plagiarizing my CV?

I think we need to add "unemployed alcoholic" to the list of likely professions for DC psychopaths. it's not entirely fair to diagnose at second hand, but it has been the considered opinion of several psychologists/psychiatrists that my stepfather was a psychopath. I really had to go with them there, possibly because I'm biased in an internal political way in favor of people who say other people are responsible for my psychological problems. if they told me something was a triangle I would absolutely agree with them, even if it were a nonagon and cass sunstein was actually right.

Psychiatry is also a profession that attracts psychopaths

Podiatry is a profession that attracts footpaths.

To say nothing of footpads!

or sirius black's animal form.

My podiatrist used a Dremel on my foot. It was not pleasant.

That's one of those little Jewish spinning top things, right?

Probably.

The little Jewish thing that forms an eternal golden braid around your waist id of course a gödel.

33: I thought that was a Mormon thing.

That's castration.