Are Conservatives More Sensitive to Threat than Liberals? It Depends on How We Define Threat and Conservatism
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 23329872 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jarret T Crawford (0000-0001-7885-0759, College of New Jersey, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2017 |
| Volume | 35 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 354-373 |
| Publication date | 2017-08-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Social Cognition (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0278-016X • E-ISSN: 1943-2798 |
| Publisher | Guilford Publications (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.1521/soco.2017.35.4.354 |
| OpenAlex | W2739472373 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 65 |
| References cited | 89 |
The motivated social cognition and negativity bias perspectives each posit that threat is especially related to political conservatism, such that threat causes people to adopt politically conservative beliefs, and that political conservatives are especially responsive to threatening stimuli. In this review, I argue that there is a kernel of truth to these perspectives, but that they each define both “threat” and “conservatism” too broadly. I review evidence supporting a Compensatory Political Behavior (CPB) Model, which posits that whereas liberals and conservatives are similarly influenced by and responsive to meaning threats, conservatives, and in particular social conservatives, are differentially influenced by and responsive to physical threats. The CPB model suggests that whereas some political beliefs are more deeply rooted in psychological predispositions, others reflect more surface-based ideological motives. I conclude with suggestions for future research to test the model's predictions regarding the relationship between threat and political ideology.
Cognition · Conservatism · Economics · Ideology · Meaning (existential) · Motivated reasoning · Negativity effect · Political science · Politics · Positive economics · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion · Law · Psychology · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology
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| Unique citing works | 65 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 8,13 |
| Citation span | 2018 - 2026 (9) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 65 |