Integration of Cognitive Sciences into the Political Sphere: From Research to Forecasting and Managing Political Behavior in the Digital Age

Contemporary challenges, stemming from accelerated digitalization and the increasing complexity of political processes, are driving the integration of interdisciplinary approaches into political science. For the first time in history, advances in neuroscience and digital technologies make it possible to probe the depths of human consciousness, enabling the analysis and prediction of behavior that circumvents an individual’s conscious will. This capability presents a fundamental challenge to the Enlightenment principle of individual sovereignty, demanding both philosophical reflection and empirical research into its profound opportunities and risks. The authors address this challenge by examining the cognitive dimensions of political decision-making, leadership, and mass belief formation. Particular attention is paid to the impact of digitalization on the transformation of political behavior and governance strategies. Drawing on findings from neurophysiology and cognitive science, the authors examine the key mechanisms that determine decision-making in the political sphere, including the influence of emotional and cognitive factors. It is argued that the integration of neuroscience and digital technologies is transforming traditional approaches to the analysis of political reality. Furthermore, the synergy between cognitive science, sociology, and political science opens new avenues for researching human potential, a critical task of particular relevance in an era of global uncertainty and digital transformation. The proposed approaches not only deepen the understanding of the cognitive and emotional mechanisms of political behavior but also facilitate the development of new tools for forecasting and governance in the contemporary political environment. The article highlights the dual nature of using the tools of political cognitive science: on the one hand, it offers unprecedented opportunities for understanding political processes; on the other, it creates risks of conscious manipulation and the erosion of human agency. The authors conclude that the development of robust ethical principles for the use of neurotechnology in politics is imperative. Such principles must be designed to enhance human potential and safeguard the role of individuals as the subjects of political development, preventing their reduction to manageable data resources.

1. Adolphs R. (2009) The Social Brain: Neural Basis of Social Knowledge. Annual Review of Psychology. Vol. 60, pp. 693–716.

2. Assmann J. (2000) Das kulturelle Gedächtnis. Schrift, Erinnerung und politische Identität in frühen Hochkulturen. München: C.H. Beck (in German).

3. Atkinson R.C. & Shiffrin R.M. (1968) Human Memory: A Proposed System and Its Control Processes. In: Spence K.W. & Spence J.T. (Eds.) The Psychology of Learning and Motivation: Advances in Research and Theory (Vol. 2, pp. 89–195). New York: Academic Press.

4. Bartlett F.C. (1932) Remembering: A Study in Experimental and Social Psychology. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

5. Boyatzis R.E., Passarelli A.M., Koenig K., Lowe M., Mathew B., Stoller J.K., & Phillips M. (2012) Examination of the Neural Substrates Activated in Memories of Experiences with Resonant and Dissonant Leaders. The Leadership Quarterly. Vol. 23, no. 2, pp. 259–272.

6. Brynjolfsson E. & McAfee A. (2014) The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

7. Chen P. & Hong W. (2018) Neural Circuit Mechanisms of Social Behavior. Neuron. Vol. 98, no. 1, pp. 16–30.

8. Chomsky N. (1957) Syntactic Structures. The Hague: Mouton and Co.

9. Connolly W. (2002) Neuropolitics: Thinking, Culture, Speed. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.

10. Degtyareva E.B. (2023) Examining the Role of Political Language and Rhetoric in the Context of the Debate on Political Efficacy (on the Example of T. Docherty’s Work). Sravnitel'naya politika = Comparative Politics Russia. Vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 154–165 (in Russian).

11. Downs A. (1957) An Economic Theory of Democracy. New York: Harper.

12. Frolov I.T. (1985) Towards a Unified Science of Man. Priroda. No. 8, pp. 65–74 (in Russian).

13. Hayek F.A. von (2011) Individualism and Economic Order (O.A. Dmitrieva, Trans.; R.I. Kapelyushnikov, Ed.). Chelyabinsk: Sotsium (Russian translation).

14. Heatherton T.F. (2011) Neuroscience of Self and Self-Regulation. Annual Review of Psychology. Vol. 62, pp. 363–390.

15. Iacoboni M. (2008) Mirroring People: The Science of Empathy and How We Connect with Others. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

16. Illes J. & Bird S.J. (2006) Neuroethics: A Modern Context for Ethics in Neuroscience. Trends in Neurosciences. Vol. 29, no. 9, pp. 511–517.

17. Kahneman D. (2011) Thinking, Fast and Slow. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

18. Kaplan J.T., Freedman J., & Iacoboni M. (2007) Us versus Them: Political Attitudes and Party Affiliation Influence Neural Response to Faces of Presidential Candidates. Neuropsychologia. Vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 55–64.

19. Knutson B., Taylor J., Kaufman M., Peterson R., & Glover G. (2005) Distributed Neural Representation of Expected Value. The Journal of Neuroscience. Vol. 25, no. 19, pp. 4806–4812.

20. Kragel P.A. & LaBar K.S. (2016) Decoding the Nature of Emotion in the Brain. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. Vol. 20, no. 6, pp. 444–455.

21. Lakoff G. (2004) Don’t Think of an Elephant! Know Your Values and Frame the Debate. Hartford: Chelsea Green Publishing.

22. Lebedeva M.M. & Zinov'eva E.S. (2023) Neuroscience Methods in the Study of World Politics. Polis. Politicheskie issledovaniya = Political Studies. No. 5, pp. 141–152 (in Russian).

23. Locke J. (1988) Two Treatises of Government. In: Locke J. Works in 3 Vols. (Vol. 3; A.L. Subbotin, Ed. & Comp.). Moscow: Mysl’ (Russian translation).

24. Markram H. (2012) The Human Brain Project. Scientific American. Vol. 306, no. 6, pp. 50–55.

25. Merzenich M.M. & Sameshima K. (1993) Cortical Plasticity and Memory. Current Opinion in Neurobiology. Vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 187–196.

26. Mill J.S. (2001) On Liberty. Kitchener: Batoche Books.

27. Miller G.A. (1956) The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information. Psychological Review. Vol. 63, no. 2, pp. 81–97.

28. Mises L. von (2023) Human Action: A Treatise on Economics (A.V. Kuryaev, Trans.; 3rd ed.). Moscow & Chelyabinsk: Sotsium (Russian translation).

29. Neisser U. (1967) Cognitive Psychology. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.

30. Phelps E.A., Lempert K.M., & Sokol-Hessner P. (2014) Emotion and Decision Making: Multiple Modulatory Neural Circuits. Annual Review of Neuroscience. Vol. 37, pp. 263–287.

31. Popper K.R. (1993) The Poverty of Historicism (S.A. Kudrina, Trans.). Moscow: Progress; VIA (Russian translation).

32. Raichle M.E. (1994) Images of the Mind: Studies with Modern Imaging Techniques. Annual Review of Psychology. Vol. 45, pp. 333–356.

33. Shackman A.J., Maxwell J.S., McMenamin B.W., Greischar L.L., & Davidson R.J. (2011) Stress Potentiates Early and Attenuates Late Stages of Visual Processing. The Journal of Neuroscience. Vol. 31, no. 3, pp. 1156–1161.

34. Shannon C.E. & Weaver W. (1949) The Mathematical Theory of Communication. Urbana: University of Illinois Press.

35. Simon H.A. & Newell A. (1971) Human Problem Solving: The State of the Theory in 1970. American Psychologist. Vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 145–159.

36. Tolman E.C. (1948) Cognitive Maps in Rats and Men. Psychological Review. Vol. 55, no. 4, pp. 189–208.

37. Turing A.M. (1950) Computing Machinery and Intelligence. Mind. Vol. 59, no. 236, pp. 433–460.

38. Turner J.C., Hogg M.A., Oakes P.J., Reicher S.D., & Wetherell M.S. (1987) Rediscovering the Social Group: A Self-Categorization Theory. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.

39. Tversky A. & Kahneman D. (1974) Judgment under Uncertainty: Heuristics and Biases. Science. Vol. 185, no. 4157, pp. 1124–1131.

40. Weber M. (1990) Basic Concepts of Stratification. In: Weber M. Selected Works (Yu.N. Davydov, Comp. & Ed.). Moscow: Progress (Russian translation).