A new research report suggests an evolutionary link between a society’s persistent high exposure to disease, and its predilection to collectivism. It raises but can not answer the nature/nurture questions. An accessible commentary is published in Reason.

It would be terrible to think that some societies are conformist, and doomed always to choose to live under the dictators’ lash, because too many of its people are genetically programmed to distrust freedom’s risk of non-conformity (and strangers).

I once read of a study in France that showed a strong and inexplicable link between blood type grouping, and left/right voting patterns. From recollection that report said that it had eliminated religious/cultural effects (though that must have been difficult). I’ve never found a reference to it since. If anyone knows of it and can point me to the reference I’d love to know whether my memory is accurate.