Here's an abstract of an interesting paper on the psychology of conservative 'secular fundamentalists'. The research paper (funded jointly by the National Science Foundation and National Institute of Mental Health at the National Institute of Health) was published last year. It's entitled "Political Conservatism as Motivated Social Cognition" and contains some interesting data.

According to the authors:

"…[W]e consider evidence for and against the hypotheses that political conservatism is significantly associated with (1) mental rigidity and closed-mindedness, including (a) increased dogmatism and intolerance of ambiguity, (b) decreased cognitive complexity, (c) decreased openness to experience, (d) uncertainty avoidance, (e) personal needs for order and structure, and (f) need for cognitive closure; (2) lowered self-esteem; (3) fear, anger, and aggression; (4) pessimism, disgust, and contempt; (5) loss prevention; (6) fear of death; (7) threat arising from social and economic deprivation; and (8) threat to the stability of the social system. We have argued that these motives are in fact related to one another psychologically, and our motivated social—cognitive perspective helps to integrate them. We now offer an integrative, meta-analytic review of research on epistemic, existential, and ideological bases of conservatism."


I guess this explains some of the stubborn approaches to policy, like the occupation of Iraq which continues to worsen with no strategy to improve the situation.