The epithet conservative or liberal is used to describe political and economic views and affiliations. The meaning of "conservative" or "liberal" could be different in different contexts - social, economic and political. They also differ in usage in different countries and over time. Here we compare liberal and conservative philosophies as the terms are used in American politics today, with some references to the UK and Australia.
Comparison chart
| Political Views | Conservative Right-wing, anti-federalist. Prefer smaller government, less regulation, most services to be provided by the private sector in a free market, and a literal interpretation of the Constitution. Liberal Left-wing, federalist. Prefer more regulation and services like free universal health care to be provided by the government to all citizens. | |
|---|---|---|
| Economic Views | Conservative Government should tax less and spend less. Cutting spending to balance the budget should be the priority. Higher income earners should have an incentive to invest (credits). Charity is the responsibility of the people. Liberal Government should provide more services to the less fortunate (like health care) and increase taxes if necessary. High-income earners should pay a larger percentage of their income as taxes. | |
| Social Views | Conservative Opposed to gay marriage, abortion and embryonic stem cell research. Support the right to bear arms, death penalty, and personal responsibility as an individual. Liberal Gay couples to get equal rights like everyone else (e.g. marriage); abortion should be legal; support embryonic stem cell research. Support restrictions and regulation around the right to bear arms. | |
| Personal Responsibility | Conservative Individuals should exercise personal responsibility and it is the governments role to hold them accountable even with severe penalties. Laws are enacted to reflect the best interest of the society as a whole. Liberal The people should look to the government to provide a structure. Laws are enacted to protect every individual for an equal society sometimes at the expense of economic freedom if neccessary. |
Social Issues
In terms of views on social issues,
conservatives oppose gay marriage,
abortion and embryonic stem cell research.
Liberals on the other hand, are more left-
leaning and generally supportive of the right
of gay people to get married and women's
right to choose to have an abortion, as ruled
by the U.S. Supreme Court in Roe v Wade.
With regard to the right to bear arms, which
is enshrined in the Second Amendment to
the US constitution, conservatives support
this right for all US citizens, whereas liberals
oppose civilian gun ownership — or at the
very least, demand that restrictions be
placed such as background checks on
people who want to buy guns, requiring guns
to be registered, and ban on automatic
weapons that can be used for large-scale
violence (as opposed to hand guns).
Economic Issues
The different schools of economic thought
found among conservatives and liberals
are closely related to America's anti-
federalist and federalist history, with
conservatives desiring little to no govern-
ment intervention in economic affairs and
liberals desiring greater regulation.
Economic conservatives believe that the
private sector can provide most services
more efficiently than the government can.
They also believe that government
regulation is bad for businesses, usually
has unintended consequences,and should
be minimal. With many conservatives
believing in "trickle-down" economics, they
favor a small government that collects
fewer taxes and spends less.
In contrast, liberals believe many citizens
rely on government services for health-
care, unemployment insurance,health and
safety regulations, and so on. As such,
liberals often favor a larger government
that taxes more and spends more to
provide services to its citizens.
Some good examples of this policy split
are the Environmental Protection Agency,
which liberals think is vital and some
conservatives want to abolish or scale
down, and the Medicare and Medicaid
programs, which liberals want to expand
and conservatives believe should be
partially or completely privatized through
a voucher system connected to private
health insurers.
Historical "Liberals" in the
UK and Australia
In the early part of the twentieth century,
liberals -especially those in Britain- were
those who stood for laissez fair capitalism.
In more recent times, however, the
nomenclature seems to have reversed.
The exception to this is found in Australia,
where the mainstream conservative party
is called the Liberal Party and the main-
stream non-conservative party is called
the Labour Party.
Political views and
Core Beliefs
Political liberals believe that parties
motivated by self-interest are willing to
behave in ways that are harmful to society
unless government is prepared — and
empowered — to constrain them. They
believe regulation is necessitated when
individuals, corporations, and industries
demonstrate a willingness to pursue
financial gain at an intolerable cost to
society—and grow too powerful to be
constrained by other social institutions.
Liberals believe in systematic protections
against hazardous workplaces, unsafe
consumer products, and environmental
pollution. They remain wary of the
corruption — and historic abuses,
particularly the oppression of political
minorities — that have taken place in the
absence of oversight for state and local
authorities. They believe the public welfare
is promoted by cultivating a widely-tolerant
and -permissive society.
Political conservatives believe commercial
regulation does more harm than good —
unnecessarily usurping political freedoms,
potentially stifling transformative
innovations, and typically leading to
further regulatory interference. They
endorse the contraction of governmental
involvement in non-commercial aspects of
society as well, calling upon the private
sector to assume their activities.
Conservatives call for the devolution of
powers to the states, and believe locally-
tailored solutions are more appropriate to
local circumstances. They promulgate
individual responsibility, and believe a
strong society is made up of citizens who
can stand on their own. Conservatives
believe in the importance of stability, and
promote law and order to protect private
property.
Liberals believe in universal access to health
care; they believe personal health should be
in no way dependent upon one's financial
resources, and support government inter-
vention to sever that link. Political
conservatives prefer no government
sponsorship of health care; they prefer all
industries to be private, favor deregulation
of commerce, and advocate a reduced role
for government in all aspects of society.
They believe government should be in no
way involved in one's healthcare purchasing
decisions.
Psychological traits
Jonathan Haidt, a University of Virginia
psychology professor, has examined the
values of liberals and conservatives
through paired moral attributes:
harm/care,
fairnesss/reciprocity,
ingroup/loyalty,
authority/respect,
purity/sanctity.
He outlines the psychological
differences in the following TED talk:
Haidt has also written a book, The
Righteous Mind, based on his studies
conducted over several years on liberal
and conservative subjects. Nicholas
Kristof, an avowed liberal, offered an
unbiased review of the book and cited
some interesting findings such as:
- Morality for conservatives includes three attributes that are not as highly-valued by liberals: loyalty, respect for authority, and sanctity.
- Research suggests that conservatives are particularly attuned to threats, with a greater startle reflex in response to loud noises. Conservatives also secrete more skin moisture when they see disgusting images, such as a person eating worms--liberals respond less emphatically.
- Liberals prefer dogs who are empathetic, not subservient; conservatives seek dogs who are loyal and obedient.
Libertarians
Liberals should not be confused with
libertarians. Libertarians believe that
the role of the government should be
extremely limited, especially in the
economic sphere. They believe that
governments are prone to corruption
and inefficiencies and that the private
sector in a free market can achieve
better outcomes than government
bureaucracies, because they make
better decisions on resource allocation.
Liberals, on the other hand, favor more
government involvement because they
believe there are several areas where the
private sector -- especially if left
unregulated - needs checks and
balances to ensure consumer
protection.
The primary focus of libertarians is the
maximization of liberty for all citizens,
regardless of race, class, or socio-
economic position. On fiscal issues
such as taxes and government
regulation, libertarian positions are
similar to conservatives. On social
issues like LGBTQ rights, libertarian
views are similar to liberals. On foreign
policy, liberals and conservatives in
America have generally had attitudes;
but libertarians prefer to not be
interventionists or empire-builders.
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