From yesterday's Times:

Quote:

Weak men more likely to be socialists, study claims

Tom Whipple

Don't tell John Prescott, but maybe socialists are socialists because they are not that good in a fight. Conversely, free marketeers may not actually have a sincere belief in the power of Adam Smith's unseeing hand — and instead may boast a justified belief in the power of their clenched fist.

A study has found that weaker men are more likely to be in favour of redistributive taxation.

The strong on the other hand, who in their caveman past had no problems controlling women and resources that they had no intention of sharing, are far less likely to see the virtue of egalitarian social policies.

That is one interpretation of research by academics from Brunei University in London. They assessed 171 men for how well-built they were — looking at strength, bicep circumference, weight and height.

Writing in the journal Evolution and Human Behaviour, the researchers found that those men who looked more formidable were more likely to believe that particular social groups should be naturally dominant. They were also much less likely to back policies that redistribute wealth.

Michael Price, from Brunei, said that this fitted with some of the predictions of evolutionary psychology. "This is about our Stone Age brains, in a modern society," he said.

"Our minds evolved in environments where strength was a big determinant of success.

"If you find yourself in a body not threatened by other males, if you feel you can win competitions for status, then maybe you start thinking inequality is pretty good."