True, there are trade offs either way. But one important psychological difference between liberals and conservatives is that the latter are generally more sensitive to threats, while the former are more open to experience.

The wrinkle is that when you’re talking about public policy, a policy that is risk averse from one person’s standpoint, like being “tough on crime,” for example, creates risks for others, such as being on the receiving end of police violence.

This is where having diversity of experience among lawmakers is important, so that we see all the ways a policy can adversely impact different parts of the community.