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The Palliative Function of Conservative Ideology
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Why are conservatives happier?
Why Are Conservatives Happier than Liberals?
In 2006 a public opinion survey addressing the relationship between political orientation and
happiness inspired headlines and editorials around the world. Specifically, according to the Pew
Center, 47% of conservative Republicans in the U.S. described themselves as “very happy,” as
compared with only 28% of liberal Democrats (Taylor, Funk, & Craighill, 2006, p. 16). The
conservative columnist George Will relished these statistics, writing that, “Liberalism is a complicated
and exacting, not to say grim and scolding, creed. And not one conducive to happiness” (Will, 2006, p.
A19).
There are several reasons why conservatives might be happier than liberals, and only a few of
these were considered by the Pew researchers. The least interesting of these, from a psychological
perspective, include demographic differences between liberals and conservatives with respect to
income, age, education, sex, religiosity, and marital status. The results of the Pew survey suggest that
the ideological gap with respect to happiness is not entirely due to demographic factors, although
religiosity does seem to play a significant role (see also Haidt, 2006; Meyers & Diener, 1995).
Nevertheless, at least two psychologically intriguing possibilities remain.
First, there is a sizeable research literature documenting robust differences between liberals and
conservatives in terms of cognitive styles and motivation (e.g., Jost, Glaser, Kruglanski, & Sulloway,
2003). To the extent that liberals tend to enjoy thinking more and to prolong cognitive closure,
whereas conservatives tend to prefer relatively simple, unambiguous answers to life’s questions (Jost,
Napier, Thorisdottir et al., 2007; Kruglanski, Pierro, Mannetti, & De Grada, 2006), liberals might
become less satisfied with their current situation because of the deleterious effects of rumination and
introspection (e.g., Wilson, Kraft, & Dunn, 1989). If this is the case, then one would expect that
ideological differences in the “need for cognition” (Petty & Jarvis, 1996) would account for the gap in
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| | Authors: Napier, Jaime L.. and Jost, John. |
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Why are conservatives happier?
Why Are Conservatives Happier than Liberals?
In 2006 a public opinion survey addressing the relationship between political orientation and
happiness inspired headlines and editorials around the world. Specifically, according to the Pew
Center, 47% of conservative Republicans in the U.S. described themselves as “very happy,” as
compared with only 28% of liberal Democrats (Taylor, Funk, & Craighill, 2006, p. 16). The
conservative columnist George Will relished these statistics, writing that, “Liberalism is a complicated
and exacting, not to say grim and scolding, creed. And not one conducive to happiness” (Will, 2006, p.
A19).
There are several reasons why conservatives might be happier than liberals, and only a few of
these were considered by the Pew researchers. The least interesting of these, from a psychological
perspective, include demographic differences between liberals and conservatives with respect to
income, age, education, sex, religiosity, and marital status. The results of the Pew survey suggest that
the ideological gap with respect to happiness is not entirely due to demographic factors, although
religiosity does seem to play a significant role (see also Haidt, 2006; Meyers & Diener, 1995).
Nevertheless, at least two psychologically intriguing possibilities remain.
First, there is a sizeable research literature documenting robust differences between liberals and
conservatives in terms of cognitive styles and motivation (e.g., Jost, Glaser, Kruglanski, & Sulloway,
2003). To the extent that liberals tend to enjoy thinking more and to prolong cognitive closure,
whereas conservatives tend to prefer relatively simple, unambiguous answers to life’s questions (Jost,
Napier, Thorisdottir et al., 2007; Kruglanski, Pierro, Mannetti, & De Grada, 2006), liberals might
become less satisfied with their current situation because of the deleterious effects of rumination and
introspection (e.g., Wilson, Kraft, & Dunn, 1989). If this is the case, then one would expect that
ideological differences in the “need for cognition” (Petty & Jarvis, 1996) would account for the gap in
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