Conservative-leaning individuals, on a whole, are happier than left-wing liberals according to a new study that even suggests the reason: Conservatives justify social and economic inequalities.
Conservatives from various different backgrounds reported greater life satisfaction and well-being than liberals, the study reported. Regardless of marital status, social status or religious affiliation, conservatives were generally happier and scored highest on the part of the study that gauged a person's tendency to rationalize inequalities.
The study included statements intended to gauge how much a person rationalizes 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." Conservatives tended to agree with these statements more than liberals.
Conservatives primarily supported the idea of meritocracy, which assumes that people move up in their economic status in society based on diligent work and good performance. This belief provides an explanation for people's social standing, which the study interpreted as a rationalization of social inequality.
Jaime Napier and John Jost of New York University, who conducted the survey, found that if people's beliefs don't justify gaps in status, they are likely to feel frustrated and disheartened. The researchers conducted a U.S.-centric survey and an internationally focused survey to reach their final conclusions.
"Our research suggests that inequality takes a greater psychological toll on liberals than on conservatives," Napier and Jost write in the June issue of the Psychological Science Journal, "apparently because liberals lack ideological rationalizations that would help them frame inequality in a positive (or at least neutral) light," MSNBC reported.
The results of the survey further support a survey by the Pew Research Center in 2006. The results of the earlier survey indicated 47 percent of conservatives in the U.S. consider themselves to be "very happy," while a mere 28 percent of liberals did.
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