Are conservatives happier than liberals?

[Illuminaughty]

I also think it's possible that by "conservative" they aren't including only the fringe, conspiracy theory laden (UN world domination New World Order), secessionist, Tea Party types who worry about shariah take over of the US but also normal center right people.

 

[Yoder777]

Actually both you and the article do nothing BUT talk in generalities. The whole "liberals don't like America" is another song and dance we've continued to see a lot of in the 21st century, a lie thrown at us for the unpardonable sin of not supporting Bush's unjustified wars.

The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan research firm.

Are We Happy Yet? | Pew Social & Demographic Trends

What it found is that, for several reasons, conservatives tend to be happier than liberals, regardless of income level. Their findings have been supported by other nonpartisan organizations.

The major reason for this ideological or partisan difference in happiness is that, overall, conservatives tend to see inequality as resulting from merit and achievement while liberals tend to see inequality as resulting from societal injustices:
http://www.psych.nyu.edu/jost/Napier & Jost (2008) Why are conservatives happier than libe.pdf

 

[Illuminaughty]

People who are happy with the status quo are less likely to want change. Makes sense that some happy people might decide to go conservative. Would also make sense that people who are not happy with the status quo (or who have been stepped on by it) and consider it unjust would want change and thus go liberal. Conservative conserve and liberals change. Of course the far right people are unhappy with the status quo and want change just as much as the liberals but only in the more reactionary manner of going backwards to the good old day. They don't simply want to conserve like many conservatives do. It would be interesting to see the happiness levels of the reactionary wing of the conservative movement by itself.

 

[BostonTzar]

Actually both you and the article do nothing BUT talk in generalities. The whole "liberals don't like America" is another song and dance we've continued to see a lot of in the 21st century, a lie thrown at us for the unpardonable sin of not supporting Bush's unjustified wars.

By definition liberals favor change and conservatives favor the status quo. Said another way, liberals are unhappy about the status quo and conservatives are happy with the status quo. No big earth shattering revelation for most.

 

[Savior2006]

The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan research firm.

Okay fine. But the Pew article isn't the one going on about how liberals don't love the country. You are.

The major reason for this ideological or partisan difference in happiness is that, overall, conservatives tend to see inequality as resulting from merit [/quote]

Unless the subject is a minority. In which case all their successes and accomplishments were due to affirmative action. That's what we heard with Sotomayor and Obama. Sorry. Not buying it.

 

[kermit]

IMO, asking conservative and liberals if they are happy is the wrong approach.

In my experience, conservatives tend to not be very introspective. For example, I used to a work with a guy who made Margret Thatcher seem like a pinko. He would always joke around and had all sort of silly things on his desk. By outward appearance he seemed very happy, but after one got to know him a bit you realized that he was deep-down a very miserable and lonely person who wore a veneer of happiness, but I'm 100% sure that, if asked, he would say he was happy.

 

[Savior2006]

IMO, asking conservative and liberals if they are happy is the wrong approach.

In my experience, conservatives tend to not be very introspective. For example, I used to a work with a guy who made Margret Thatcher seem like a pinko. He would always joke around and had all sort of silly things on his desk. By outward appearance he seemed very happy, but after one got to know him a bit you realized that he was deep-down a very miserable and lonely person who wore a veneer of happiness, but I'm 100% sure that, if asked, he would say he was happy.

How somebody poses the question is important. Me? Happiness is a certain elation that happens every now and again. I certainly don't feel that way all the time. Most of the time, I feel neutral. And neutral is good.

 

[Joykins]

The journal article concludes--based on a number of studies--that it is dissatisfaction with socioeconomic inequalities that is strongly associated with liberals scoring lower than conservatives on "happiness." It's not actually due as much to lack of / increased introspection.

Of course, being happy with things the way they are is kind of what it means to be a conservative, in the technical sense, you want to conserve your traditions and way of life. It's the liberals who think things need to improve and try to do it. Both viewpoints are necessary because both viewpoints can produce bad ideas.

 

[keith99]

IMO, asking conservative and liberals if they are happy is the wrong approach.

In my experience, conservatives tend to not be very introspective. For example, I used to a work with a guy who made Margret Thatcher seem like a pinko. He would always joke around and had all sort of silly things on his desk. By outward appearance he seemed very happy, but after one got to know him a bit you realized that he was deep-down a very miserable and lonely person who wore a veneer of happiness, but I'm 100% sure that, if asked, he would say he was happy.

Interesting point and one worth applying to a lot of polls. Self reporting as to happiness can have a major impact on the result because of how people interpret being happy (and as you mention by people reporting how they wish to appear).

 

[jayem]

By definition liberals favor change and conservatives favor the status quo. Said another way, liberals are unhappy about the status quo and conservatives are happy with the status quo. No big earth shattering revelation for most.

Are conservatives happy with the status quo? Internet discussion boards may not be representative samples. But from what I read, conservatives--much more so than liberals--are censorious, embittered, and filled with acrimony regarding the current state of affairs.

 

[Veritas]

Not so much.

Study: Conservatives and liberals are equally charitable, but they give to different charities

Congratulations! That is one of the only links I've ever seen you post. Unfortunately, it looks to me like the authors of the MIT study set out to prove their point and in so doing, engaged in confirmation bias.

IMO, asking conservative and liberals if they are happy is the wrong approach.

In my experience, conservatives tend to not be very introspective. For example, I used to a work with a guy who made Margret Thatcher seem like a pinko. He would always joke around and had all sort of silly things on his desk. By outward appearance he seemed very happy, but after one got to know him a bit you realized that he was deep-down a very miserable and lonely person who wore a veneer of happiness, but I'm 100% sure that, if asked, he would say he was happy.

Is your personal experience indicative of truth?

 

[BostonTzar]

Are conservatives happy with the status quo? Internet discussion boards may not be representative samples. But from what I read, conservatives--much more so than liberals--are censorious, embittered, and filled with acrimony regarding the current state of affairs.

If by "current state of affairs" you mean the changes being implemented, then you would be correct. as would I.

Then again, I can only guess at what you read other than this board, but this board is far removed from the real world.

 

[kermit]

Congratulations! That is one of the only links I've ever seen you post.

You keep pushing this falsehood.

You may post a lot of links but the vast majority fo them are, shall we say, questionable. You post your opinion and find some unknown blogger that agrees with you as if that adds some credibility to your opinion. I don't see a need to source my opinions. But when I post factual things I find credible sources to back it up. For example, I heard on talk radio about the break down of giving among different types of conservatives (which according to him had a huge disparity), but I didn't post it as I could find the research the person was referring to.

Unfortunately, it looks to me like the authors of the MIT study set out to prove their point and in so doing, engaged in confirmation bias.

People don't study at MIT by doing shoddy work. Being among the top research schools in the nation MIT relies heavily on the integrity of it's staff and students to maintain that status. MIT researchers that engage in confirmation bias quickly become former MIT researchers.

The only confirmation bias I see is yours.

Is your personal experience indicative of truth?

That was one example of many.

 

[kermit]

Interesting point and one worth applying to a lot of polls. Self reporting as to happiness can have a major impact on the result because of how people interpret being happy (and as you mention by people reporting how they wish to appear).

Self-reporting is important. It helps us all see how differently we see ourselves from how we actually are.

For example, if I ask are you happy and then ask a series of question that speak to your happiness without asking it we would likely see a stark contrast for everyone. IMO, the contrast would be largest among conservatives.

 

[technofox]

Deleted

 

[Klonz]

Liberals are generally more negative and i would imagine less happy than conservatives.

 

[Yoder777]

the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence is a logical fallacy.

Even if you’re stuck in the bottom 5% of the US income distribution your standard of living is about equal to that of the top 5% of Indians. Even if you’re in the bottom 10% your standard of living is about the same as that of the bottom 10% in other rich countries (which, so we are told, care so much more and do so much more) like Sweden and Finland. And when we sweep everything together into some sort of quality of life measure the American poor are better off than the French or German poor.

Astonishing Numbers: America's Poor Still Live Better Than Most Of The Rest Of Humanity - Forbes

this isn't some right wing propaganda. it's the findings of branco milanovic, economist for the world bank.

Branko Milanović - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

i don't know what ideological labels one should use, but i am whatever label there is for someone who thinks we live in a great country and would rather live nowhere else, even if certain things about life in our society may not be fair.

i have sort of a unique perspective because my mother's side of the family goes back to before the american revolution while my dad's side of the family came here from greece after world war 2.

 

[Yoder777]

Okay fine. But the Pew article isn't the one going on about how liberals don't love the country. You are.

Conservatives are more likely than liberals to love the country as it is, rather than hoping for a more utopian version of how they think American society should be. Conservatives love their country even when its government fails, because they don't believe that it's the government's responsibility to solve all of society's problems in the first place.

Regardless of marital status, income or church attendance, right-wing individuals reported greater life satisfaction and well-being than left-wingers, the new study found. Conservatives also scored highest on measures of rationalization, which gauge a person's tendency to justify, or explain away, inequalities.
The rationalization measure included statements such as: "It is not really that big a problem if some people have more of a chance in life than others," and "This country would be better off if we worried less about how equal people are."

To justify economic inequalities, a person could support the idea of meritocracy, in which people supposedly move up their economic status in society based on hard work and good performance. In that way, one's social class attainment, whether upper, middle or lower, would be perceived as totally fair and justified.
If your beliefs don't justify gaps in status, you could be left frustrated and disheartened, according to the researchers, Jaime Napier and John Jost of New York University. They conducted a U.S.-centric survey and a more internationally focused one to arrive at the findings.
"Our research suggests that inequality takes a greater psychological toll on liberals than on conservatives," the researchers write in the June issue of the journal Psychological Science, "apparently because liberals lack ideological rationalizations that would help them frame inequality in a positive (or at least neutral) light."
The results support and further explain a Pew Research Center survey from 2006, in which 47 percent of conservative Republicans in the U.S. described themselves as "very happy," while only 28 percent of liberal Democrats indicated such cheer.
Conservatives Happier Than Liberals | LiveScience

Studies show that, regardless of income level, you are more likely to be happy if you see economic inequality as the result of merit and achievement, rather than as the result of a fundamentally unjust society. Which attitude, between these two, do you think is more likely to lead to success in life?

 

[keith99]

Self-reporting is important. It helps us all see how differently we see ourselves from how we actually are.

For example, if I ask are you happy and then ask a series of question that speak to your happiness without asking it we would likely see a stark contrast for everyone. IMO, the contrast would be largest among conservatives.

Oh definitely, self reporting is valuable, but it is no substitute fro measurable items.

It seems the sexual revolution in the U.S. was not nearly as rapid as it seemed based on self reporting. It was like a giant switch was flipped, it went from self under reporting to self over reporting.

But one thing has remained on that. Either men over report more than women or there is something out there that looks like a woman and is not, something that men are having sex with. (could the more far out religious folks be right about demons taking fleshly form to tempt us?)

 

[Redac]

Liberals are generally more negative and i would imagine less happy than conservatives.

Sure wouldn't get that from spending much time around here.

Also your username makes me giggle.