It'd be interesting to study left-wing vs right-wing politicians. Are they all cold/calculating or warm/gooey inside? And how about tribalism? Do people (especially little kids) feel more empathy for people who look the same as they do?
I'd be interested in such serious research too, but so far everything I've ever seen on the topic has pretty clearly been "research", emphasized scare quotes, with predetermined results that just happen to precisely flatter the preconceived notions of the researchers, and I don't trust the results.
