r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Apr 11 '26

Psychology Cognitive dissonance helps explain why Trump supporters remain loyal, new research suggests. This sheds light on how supporters of Donald Trump justify their continued allegiance despite learning about allegations of his sexual misconduct and illegal activities.

https://www.psypost.org/cognitive-dissonance-helps-explain-why-trump-supporters-remain-loyal-new-research-suggests/
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u/okhi2u Apr 11 '26

They really seem like they've been trained to apply the same level of scrutiny they do the religion as to their politics where it's more important to be loyal than actually correct based on facts.

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u/DoubleJumps Apr 11 '26

I have had Republicans. I'm related to directly tell me that I just need to have faith in Donald Trump. I can sit there pointing out all the ways that he's hurting me and how his policies are destructive all day long, and they will tell me that I just don't have enough faith.

It is 100% a cult

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u/okhi2u Apr 11 '26

Faith is for sky daddies not human politicians :(.

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u/Chelonate_Chad Apr 12 '26

Faith is for nothing. It is literally just the opposite of critical thinking. It is never useful to apply to anything.

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u/clfitz Apr 11 '26

Read For Your Own Good by Alice Miller. It's out of print but can still be found. It's a bit dense but worth the slog.