Have you ever wondered about the correlation between men’s upper-body strength and their attitudes toward economic redistribution?
So have I. Fortunately a study published in the journal Psychological Science provides some interesting answers.
The study found that among rich men, those with the most upper-body strength had the most negative attitudes toward redistribution. Somewhat more surprising (at least to me):
In men of lower socioeconomic status, the correlation was reversed: stronger men were more in favor of redistribution, while men with smaller muscles were less likely to support it.
These associations remained significant even once the researchers controlled for political party. No relationship between strength and ideology, however, was seen in women.
The authors of the study suggest the differences are a product of evolution:
[I]t is a fitness error for weaker contestants to attempt to seize resources when they cannot prevail and for stronger ones to cede what they can cost-effectively defend.