What’s the link between your exercise regime and how you feel society should be run? To find out, simply answer the following question on a six-point scale.
Approximately how much time per week do you spend lifting weights, in order to build muscle? (a) None (b) less than an hour (c) 1-2 hours (d) 2-3 hours (e) 3-4 hours (f) more than 4 hours.
If you scored 3 or more, then you spend more time than the average person building muscle mass (or, at least, the average person in a recent study conducted at London’s Brunel University). In terms of your views on society, you are more likely than the average person to endorse statements such as: “Some groups of people are simply inferior to other groups,” or: “It’s OK if some groups have more of a chance in life than others.”
If you scored 2 or less, then you are less likely to endorse these statements, and also more likely to support the idea of redistribution of wealth; that the government should heavily tax the rich to support the poor.
So it’s fair to say bodybuilders are rarely socialists – if so, why? The researchers interpret their findings in terms of what they call the “social-bargaining model”. Individuals who are physically stronger – and therefore more likely to benefit from inequalities in both status and resources – are less likely to support movements that seek to level the playing field. It’s more likely to be survival of the fittest.
A fully referenced version of this article is at benambridge.com. Order Are You Smarter Than a Chimpanzee? by Ben Ambridge for £11.04 at bookshop.theguardian.com
