Science Daily reveals a scientific correlation between being, like, grossed out, and being socially conservative – a link between the O’Reilly Factor and the ick factor:
Participants who rated higher in disgust sensitivity were more likely to oppose gay marriage and abortion, issues that are related to notions of morality or purity. The researchers also found a weak correlation between disgust sensitivity and support for tax cuts, but no link between disgust sensitivity and the other issues [which included gun control and unions].
And in a separate study in the current issue of the journal Emotion, Pizarro and colleagues found a link between higher disgust sensitivity and disapproval of gays and lesbians.
I’m not sure there isn’t something circular here – people who are disgusted by things they think of as impure are disgusted by things they think of as impure. They care about impurity. But it’s an interesting start for a map of concepts of impurity….