Hard Hearts and Soft Heads

People's worldviews are important: they clearlyaffect the way people think and behave, at thepersonal, social, and societal levels. Insights intothe nature of people's belief systems, both how theywork and how they are formed and modified, allow usto better understand how people shape and are shapedby social institutionsand ideologies. The researchdescribed in this book examines how the worldviews ofuniversity students differ across disciplines, andwhether those disciplinary differences reflectpre-existing student differences or are produced bydifferent disciplinary worldviews. Four studiesevaluate these opposing explanations for differencesin sociopolitical orientations, using quantitativeand qualitative data from students and graduates. Thereasons behind discipline choice are also explored.This book will be of interest to those seeking tounderstand the role of education, and specificdiscipline context, in shaping sociopoliticalorientation. It also argues for a more comprehensivemeasure of worldview, encompassing diverse elementsof social, political, and economic attitudes, policypreferences, and behaviours.

Autorentext
Brianne Hastie completed a BA (Hons) in Psychology and a PhD inSocial Psychology at Murdoch University in Perth, WesternAustralia, Australia. She is currently a Research Fellow at theUniversity of South Australia in Adelaide, South Australia. Herresearch interests currently include discipline choice andgroup-based assessment in university.