Conservatism

This article is about conservatism as a political and social philosophy. For Conservatism (disambiguation), see Conservatism (disambiguation).

Conservatism (Latin: conservare, to "save" or "preserve") is a political attitude and philosophy, which advocates institutions and traditional practices, which have developed organically within a nation over a period of time. The raison d'être or central emphasis of conservatism is a focus on stability and continuity. The political term was first used by French politician François-René de Chateaubriand in 1819, following the French Revolution. Depending on location, the term has been used to describe a variety of politicians, with a wide range of different views.

In Western politics, the term conservatism often refers to the school of thought based on British politician Edmund Burke's criticism of the French Revolution. Though his legacy as a conservative is disputed, he wrote against the excesses of mob rule.

R. J. White wrote: "To put conservatism in a bottle with a label is like trying to liquify the atmosphere ... The difficulty arises from the nature of the thing. For conservatism is less a political doctrine than a habit of mind, a mode of feeling, a way of living." Russell Kirk considered conservatism "the negation of ideology."

Conservative political parties have diverse views; the Liberal Democratic Party in Japan, the Republican Party in the United States, the Conservative Party in Britain, the Conservative Party in Canada and the Liberal Party of Australia are all considered major conservative parties with varying positions.

Development of Western conservatism

Edmund Burke (1729–1797)

Historians use the word "conservative" to describe governments and leaders from the earliest recorded times, but it was not until the Age of Enlightenment, and the reaction to events surrounding the French Revolution of 1789, that modern conservatism rose as a distinct political attitude or train of thought. Many point to the rise of a conservative disposition in the wake of the Protestant Reformation, specifically to the works of influential Anglican theologian, Richard Hooker, emphasizing moderation in the political balancing of interests towards the goals of social harmony and common good. Edmund Burke’s polemic Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790) helped conservatism gain prominence. Edmund Burke opposed the French Revolution, which he saw as violent and chaotic.He pressed for parliamentary control of royal patronage and expenditure.

Joseph de Maistre (1753-1821)

He argued that some people have less reason than others, and thus some people will make better governments than others if they rely upon reason. The proper formulation of government came not from abstractions such as reason, but from time-honoured development of the state, piecemeal progress through experience, and the continuation of other important societal institutions such as the family and the church. Tradition draws on the wisdom of many generations and the tests of time, while reason may be a mask for the preferences of one man, and at best represents only the untested wisdom of one generation. However, Burke also wrote, "A state without the means of change is without the means of its conservation," but insisted that further change be organic rather than revolutionary. An attempt to modify the complex web of human interactions that form human society, for the sake of some doctrine or theory, runs the risk of running afoul of the iron law of unintended consequences.

Western conservatism has also been influenced by the Counter-Enlightenment works of Joseph de Maistre. Maistre argued for the restoration of hereditary monarchy, which he considered to be a divinely sanctioned institution, and for the indirect authority of the Pope over temporal matters. He also defended the principle of hierarchical authority, which the Revolution sought to destroy. Maistre published in 1819 his masterpiece Du Pape ("On the Pope"). The work is divided into four parts. In the first he argues that, in the church, the pope is sovereign, and that it is an essential characteristic of all sovereign power that its decisions should be subject to no appeal. Consequently, the pope is infallible in his teaching, since it is by his teaching that he exercises his sovereignty. In the remaining divisions the author examines the relations of the pope and the temporal powers, civilization and the welfare of nations, and the schismatic churches. He argues that nations require protection against abuses of power by a sovereignty superior to all others, and that this sovereignty should be that of the papacy, the historical saviour and maker of European civilization.

Conservatives strongly support the right of property, and Carl B. Cone, in Burke and the Nature of Politics, pointed out that this view, expressed as philosophy, also served the interests of the people involved. Conservatives diverge from classical liberalism in the tradition of Adam Smith. Some conservatives look to a modified free market order, such as the American System, ordoliberalism, or Friedrich List's National System. The latter view differs from strict laissez-faire, in that the state's role is to promote competition while maintaining the national interest, community and identity.

Most conservatives strongly support the sovereign nation, and patriotically identify with their own nation. Nationalist separatist movements may simultaneously be both radical and conservative.

Forms of conservatism

Liberal conservatism

Liberal conservatism is a variant of conservatism that combines conservative values and policies with liberal stances. As these latter two terms have had different meanings over time and across countries, liberal conservatism also has a wide variety of meanings. Historically, the term often referred to the combination of economic liberalism, which champions laissez-faire markets, with the classical conservatism concern for established tradition, respect for authority and religious values. It contrasted itself with classical liberalism, which supported freedom for the individual in both the economic and social spheres.

Over time, the general conservative philosophy has nothing in itself to do with economic liberal arguments. Conservatism has nothing to do with liberal economic thinking per se. This is also the case in countries where liberal economic ideas have been the tradition, such as the United States, and are thus considered conservative. In other countries where liberal conservative movements have entered the political mainstream, such as Italy and Spain, the terms liberal and conservative may be synonymous. The liberal conservative tradition in the United States combines the economic individualism of the classical liberals with a Burkean form of conservatism (which has also become part of the American conservative tradition, such as in the writings of Russell Kirk).

A secondary meaning for the term liberal conservatism that has developed in Europe is a combination of more modern conservative (less traditionalist) views with those of social liberalism. This has developed as an opposition to the more collectivist views of socialism. Often this involves stressing what are now conservative views of free-market economics and belief in individual responsibility, with social liberal views on defense of civil rights, environmentalism and support for a limited welfare state. This philosophy is that of Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt. In continental Europe, this is sometimes also translated into English as social conservatism.

Conservative liberalism

Conservative liberalism is a variant of liberalism that combines liberal values and policies with conservative stances, or, more simply, the right wing of the liberal movement. The roots of conservative liberalism are found at the beginning of the history of liberalism. Until the two World Wars, in most European countries the political class was formed by conservative liberals, from Germany to Italy. Conservative liberalism is a more positive and less radical version of classical liberalism. The events such as World War I occurring after 1917 brought the more radical version of classical liberalism to a more conservative (i.e. more moderate) type of liberalism.

Libertarian conservatism

Main article: Libertarian conservatism

Libertarian conservatism describes certain political ideologies within the United States and Canada which combines libertarian economic issues with aspects of conservatism. Its five main branches are Constitutionalism, paleolibertarianism, neolibertarianism, small government conservatism and Christian libertarianism. Additionally, they may overlap with paleoconservatives in their support for federalism, opposition to the welfare state and opposition to imperialism though the latter group tends to be more nationalistic, sometimes even embracing protectionism (see: Economic Nationalism).

s such as Samuel Edward Konkin III labeled libertarian conservatism right-libertarianism.

Libertarian Conservatives support strict laissez-faire policies such as free trade, opposition to the Federal Reserve and opposition to business regulations. They are vehemently opposed to environmental regulations, corporate welfare, subsidies, and other areas of economic intervention. Many of them have views in accord to Ludwig von Mises. However, many of them oppose abortion, as they see it as a positive liberty and violates the non-aggression principle because abortion is aggression towards the fetus.

Fiscal conservatism

Fiscal conservatism is the economic philosophy of prudence in government spending and debt. Edmund Burke, in his 'Reflections on the Revolution in France', articulated its principles:

...[I]t is to the property of the citizen, and not to the demands of the creditor of the state, that the first and original faith of civil society is pledged. The claim of the citizen is prior in time, paramount in title, superior in equity. The fortunes of individuals, whether possessed by acquisition or by descent or in virtue of a participation in the goods of some community, were no part of the creditor's security, expressed or implied...[T]he public, whether represented by a monarch or by a senate, can pledge nothing but the public estate; and it can have no public estate except in what it derives from a just and proportioned imposition upon the citizens at large.

Social conservatism

Social conservatism stresses the conservative attention for social stability and order. In order to maintain that order and social peace, also the lower classes have to be integrated into society (cf Benjamin Disraeli 's risk of Two nations, as described in Sybil).

In Europe, social conservatism has played an important role in history, being the direct parent of christian democracy.

Christian democracy provided the ideological basis for the conservative, corporatist or christian democrat version (neo-corporatism) of the welfare state.(Esping-Andersen)

Nowadays, the christian democratic family (European People's Party) is the largest in the European parliament. The double heritage of the EPP (conservatism and its political heir christian democracy) explains the EPP's current composition.

The evolution of conservatism into social conservatism in Europe also explains parts of the differences in political culture between the United States and Europe.

Green conservatism

Green conservatism is a term used to refer to conservatives who have incorporated green concerns into their ideology. The Conservative Party in the United Kingdom under David Cameron has embraced a green agenda that includes proposals designed to impose a tax on workplace car parking spaces, a halt to airport growth, a tax on 4x4 vehicles and restrictions on car advertising.

Cultural conservatism

Main article: Cultural conservatism

Cultural conservatism is a philosophy that supports preservation of the heritage of a nation or culture. The culture in question may be as large as Western culture or Eastern culture or as small as that of Tibet. Cultural conservatives try to adapt norms handed down from the past. The norms may be romantic, like the anti-metric movement that demands the retention of avoirdupois weights and measures in Britain and opposes their replacement with the metric system. They may be institutional: in the West this has included chivalry and feudalism, as well as capitalism, laicité and the rule of law.

In the subset social conservatism, the norms may also be what is viewed as a question of morality. In some cultures, practices such as homosexuality are seen as immoral. In others, it is considered immoral for a woman to reveal too much of her body.

Cultural conservatives often argue that old institutions have adapted to a particular place or culture and therefore ought to be preserved. Others argue that a people have a right to their cultural norms, their own language and traditions.

Religious conservatism

Religious conservatives seek to apply the teachings of particular ideologies to politics, sometimes by proclaiming the value of those teachings, at other times seeking to have those teachings influence laws. Religious conservatism may support, or be supported by, secular customs. In other places or at other times, religious conservatism may find itself at odds with the culture in which the believers reside. In some cultures, there is conflict between two or more different groups of religious conservatives, each claiming both that their view is correct, and that opposing views are wrong.

Because many religions preserve a founding text, or at least a set of well-established traditions, the possibility of radical religious conservatism arises. These are radical both in the sense of abolishing the status quo and of a perceived return to the radix or root of a belief. They are ante conservative in their claim to be preserving the belief in its original or pristine form. Radical religious conservatism generally sees the status quo as corrupted by abuses, corruption, or heresy. One example of such a movement was the radical reformation within the Protestant Reformation and the later restorationists of the 1800s. Similar phenomena have arisen in practically all the world's religions, in many cases triggered by the violent cultural collision between the traditional society in question and the modern Western society that has developed throughout the world over the past 500 years.

Conservatism in different countries

Further information: [[:right-wing and political spectrum]]

Albania

PLL Movement of Legality Monarchist Party of Albania. Rapreent the King Leka I, son of Zog I of Albanians.

Australia

Malcolm Turnbull, the leader of Liberal Party of Australia.

Conservatism in Australia is related to British and American conservatism in many respects, but has a distinct political tradition. One scholar argues that Australian conservatism is traditionally composed of diverse groups and interests that are united more by opposition to certain political developments than by a distinct shared ideology. In terms of partisan politics, conservatism has often been defined as opposition to the Australian Labor Party. Australian groups that have historically been grouped on the conservative side include social conservatives, British Empire nationalists, organizations supporting rural interests, anti-socialist Catholics, fundamentalist Christians and free-market liberals."

Historically, for the first 70 years after the Federation of Australia, the non-Labor (and hence implicitly conservative) side of Australian politics was associated with policies of moderate protectionism in trade, and of support for the welfare state, coupled with maintenance of Australia's ties to the British Empire. Many scholars have seen the government of Robert Menzies as exemplifying this trend. However, from the 1980s, free-market economic policies were increasingly associated with conservatism in Australian politics, following the same trend as the United States under Ronald Reagan and the United Kingdom under Margaret Thatcher. In contemporary Australian politics, the Liberal Party of Australia is seen as the main conservative party.

Botswana

Seretse Khama founded the conservative Botswana Democratic Party and it has been the most popular party in Botswana. According to the Economic Freedom of the World survey, Botswana is Africa's second most capitalist country.

Canada

Main article: Canadian conservatism

Presently represented by Prime Minister Stephen Harper and his ruling Conservative Party of Canada, Canadian conservatism has always been rooted in a preference for the traditional and established ways of doing things, even as it has shifted in economic, foreign and social policy. Like Burke, they rejected the sense of both ideology and revolution, preferring pragmatism and evolution. It is for that reason that unlike conservatives in the United States, Canadian conservatives are generally not republicans, preferring the monarchy and Westminster system of government.

People's Republic of China

Main article: New Conservatism (People's Republic of China)

In the People's Republic of China, new conservatism (新保守主义), sometimes translated as "neoconservatism", was a movement which first arose in the early 1990s and argued that progress was best accomplished through gradual reform of society, eschewing revolution and sudden overthrow of the governmental system. This movement was based heavily on the ideas of Edmund Burke and was described in the West by the scholar Joseph Fewsmith. Other than the name, the movement had no connection with neoconservatism in the United States (the US movement is instead referred to as Niukang in Chinese), though, from the standpoint of philosophy, it can be identified as a form of conservative thought, albeit ideologically different from "old conservatism" (旧保守主义).

Taiwan (Republic of China)

Taiwan's current President Ma Ying-jeou, who pledged to expand free trade.

In the Republic of China,commonly known as Taiwan, the conservative Kuomintang (KMT) which currently is the majority of the Taiwanese legislation, generally supports free trade with China. The KMT also has been known to be anti-communist and follows the Three Principles of the People.

Germany

Angela Merkel, the first female chancellor of Germany.

In Germany, conservatism has often been represented by Christian Democratic parties. They form the bulk of the European People's Party faction in the European Parliament. The origin of these parties is usually in Catholic parties of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and Catholic social teaching was their original inspiration. Over the years, conservatism gradually became their main ideological inspiration, and they generally became less Catholic. The German Christian Democratic Union (CDU), its Bavarian sister party Christian Social Union (CSU), and the Dutch Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) are Protestant-Catholic parties.

India

Conservatism in India is represented by Hindu nationalist parties like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). BJP advocates conservative social policies, self reliance, robust economic growth, foreign policy driven by a nationalist agenda, and strong national defense. Hindutva has a special place in its ideology and the party believes that ancient Hindu culture and values will make India a more enlightened society. BJP falls more correctly in the Centre-right definition.

Iran

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, leader of the Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran

In Iran, conservatism is represented by parties such as the Combatant Clergy Association (CCA), which includes the nation’s foremost politicized clerics (including the current Ayatollah) and is considered to be part of the "Islamic right". The CCA was the majority party in the fourth and fifth parliaments after the Islamic revolution. It was founded in 1977 by a group of clerics with intentions to use cultural approaches to overthrow the Shah. Some conservative Iranian political parties and organizations are part of the powerful Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran. The alliance, mostly active in Tehran, won almost all of Tehran's seats in the Iranian Majlis election of 2004 and the Iranian City and Village Councils election of 2003. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, former mayor of Tehran (who is chosen by Tehran's City Council) and now President of Iran, is considered one of the main figures in the alliance.

Israel

In Israel, Likud is the major centre-right political party. Founded in 1973 as an alliance of several right-wing and liberal parties, Likud's victory in the 1977 elections was a major turning point in the country's political history. Likud supports free market capitalism and liberalism. Likud, under the guidance of Finance minister Binyamin Netanyahu, pushed through legislation to reduce value added tax (VAT), income and corporate taxes, as well as customs duty. The party has instituted free trade (especially with the European Union and the United States) and has dismantled certain monopolies (e.g. Bezeq and the sea ports). It has privatized numerous government-owned companies (e.g. El Al and Bank Leumi).

Likud has in the past espoused hawkish policies towards the Palestinians, including opposition to Palestinian statehood and support of the Jewish settlers in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. However, it has also been the party which carried out the first peace agreements with Arab states. For instance, in 1979, Likud Prime Minister, Menachem Begin, signed the Camp David Accords with Egyptian President Anwar al-Sadat, which returned the Sinai Peninsula (occupied by Israel in the Six-Day War of 1967) to Egypt in return for peace between the two countries. Yitzhak Shamir also granted some legitimacy to the Palestinians by meeting them at the ill-fated Madrid Conference following the Persian Gulf War in 1991. However, Shamir refused to concede the idea of a Palestinian state, and as a result was blamed by some (including U.S. Secretary of State James Baker) for the failure of the summit. Later, as Prime Minister, Binyamin Netanyahu restated Likud's position of opposing Palestinian statehood, which after the Oslo Accords was largely accepted by the opposition Labor Party, even though the shape of any such state was not clear.

The Likud emphasize such nationalist themes as the flag and the victory in Israel's 1948 war with neighbouring Arab states. The Likud advocates teaching values in childhood education. The Likud endorses press freedom and promotion of private-sector media, which has grown markedly under governments Likud has led. A Likud government headed by Ariel Sharon, however, closed the popular right-wing pirate radio station Arutz 7 ("Channel 7). Arutz 7 was popular with the settlement movement and often criticised the government from a right-wing perspective. However, the Likud is inclined towards the Torah and expresses support for it within the context of civil Judaism, as a result of its Irgun past, which aligned itself according to the word of the Tanakh.

Japan

Junichiro Koizumi, a leader of the right-wing Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) who won the largest party majority ever in modern Japanese history.

Japan's conservative Liberal Democratic Party - which has dominated elections for half a century — traditionally identified itself with a number of general goals such as rapid, export-based economic growth and close cooperation with the United States in foreign and defense policies, as well as several newer issues, such as administrative reform. Administrative reform encompassed several themes: simplification and streamlining of government bureaucracy; privatization of stateowned enterprises; and adoption of measures, including tax reform, needed to prepare for the strain on the economy posed by an aging society.

Other priorities in the early 1990s included promoting a more active and positive role for Japan in the rapidly developing Asia-Pacific region, internationalizing Japan's economy by liberalizing and promoting domestic demand, creating a hightechnology information society, and promoting scientific research.

Nepal

The Nepali politics can be viewed as a very interesting clash of left wing parties, liberal democratic parties, conservative democratic parties and the ultra-conservatism practiced by the now-abolished Monarchy. Because of the decade long Maoist insurgency and the movements of other parties, people of Nepal seem to be rejecting the idea of extreme conservatism, and consequently the Nepalese monarchy has now been abolished. However, an intense debate still exists between intellectuals and political activists regarding the degree of conservatism in Nepali politics. While the Unified CPN (Maoist) propose a progressive ideology, rejecting all the conservative ideas; The CPN-UML, a democratic party with communist background, seems to be supporting progressive ideas blended with some conservatism. The right wing party of Nepali Congress, is considered to be more conservative than others because of their history of supporting the idea of the now abolished Hindu State as well as the idea of ceremonial monarchy. However, Nepali Congress too has adopted a Republican set up after the 2006 democracy movement in Nepal.

Historians view the inter party clash in this small nation as a melting pot of all the ideologies of the political spectrum and the intense discussions continues to intrigue many political analysts.

Netherlands

Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a writer and a former MEP from the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy.

In the strict sense, the Netherlands did not have a conservative tradition until the early 2000s. In the nineteenth-century, Dutch statesmen such as Guillaume Groen van Prinsterer and Abraham Kuyper heavily criticized modernity, but their ideas evolved toward Christian Democracy instead of conservatism.

Explicit conservatism in the Netherlands starts with Andreas Kinneging a philosopher of law who denounced liberalism in favour of the Christian and classical foundations of Western civilization. In the early 2000s, he gathered around a group of young conservatives, among them activist Joshua Livestro and journalist Bart Jan Spruyt, and founded the Edmund Burke Foundation with the ambition of becoming either a major intellectual influence or a political movement. This project failed. The Foundation now focuses on introducing conservatism to students.

Traditionally, the Dutch conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy combines advocacy of free market economy and lower taxes with advocacy of such personal liberties as euthanasia and the use of softdrugs. The Party for Freedom is a newly formed party with conservative sentiments, advocating strict restriction on immigration from Muslim countries and a return to what it calls the 'Judeo-Christian civilization'. However, it defends values which are usually not associated with conservatives, such as same-sex marriages. Furthermore, on social and economic issues it recently tends to vote as often with parties on the Left as well as on the Right. The party is led by Geert Wilders.

New Zealand

John Key, Current Prime Minister of New Zealand.

The New Zealand National Party ("National" or "the Nats") currently forms the largest (in terms of parliamentary seats) political party in the next New Zealand Parliament, and thus function as the core of a governing coalition. For many decades "National" has been the largest liberal-conservative political party in New Zealand.

The National Party currently advocates policies of reducing taxes, reducing social welfare payments, promoting free trade, restoring or maintaining New Zealand's defence alliances, and promoting one standard of citizenship for all New Zealanders ("One law for all").

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has been under the influence of conservative clerics who uphold a strict interpretation of Islamic law, and the monarchy supports conservative social polices. Women are required to dress modestly, and all sexual activity outside of a traditional heterosexual marriage is illegal. Dancing, playing music or showing movies in public are forbidden.

Scandinavian countries

In Scandinavian countries, conservatism has been represented in liberal conservative parties such as the National Coalition party in Finland, the Moderate Party in Sweden, Høyre in Norway and the Conservative People's Party in Denmark. Domestically, these parties generally support market-oriented policies. Denmark's conservative-liberal Venstre has been characterized as a classical liberal party. Their former leader (Anders Fogh Rasmussen) wrote the book Fra Socialstat til Minimalstat (English: From Social State to Minimal State), which advocated an extensive reform along classical liberal lines. This said, it should be noted that the former prime minister stated that classical liberalism is "out-dated" and gravitated towards a heavily social-democratically influenced approach towards managing the state , .

South Korea

In the 2008 parliamentary elections, the conservative Grand National Party won 37% of the vote in South Korea, compared with 25% for the liberal United Democratic Party. After decades of free market policies, free trade, and low taxation, South Korea is a major economic power and one of the wealthiest countries in Asia. It had one of the world's fastest growing economies since the 1960s, now highly developed and the fourth largest in Asia and 13th largest in the world. Forming the G20 industrial nations and the world's top ten exporters, it is an APEC and OECD member, defined as a High Income Nation by the World Bank and an Advanced Economy by the IMF and CIA. The Asian Tiger is leading the Next Eleven nations and is still among the world's fastest growing developed countries. Today, its success story is known as the "Miracle on the Han", a role model for many developing countries.

United Kingdom

Conservatism in the United Kingdom is related to its counterparts in other Western nations, but has a distinct tradition. Edmund Burke is often considered the father of conservatism in the English-speaking world. Burke was a Whig, while the term Tory is given to the later Conservative Party. One Australian scholar argues, "For Edmund Burke and Australians of a like mind, the essence of conservatism lies not in a body of theory, but in the disposition to maintain those institutions seen as central to the beliefs and practices of society."

Margaret Thatcher, United Kingdom prime minister and Ronald Reagan, American president.

The old established form of English, and after the Act of Union, British conservatism, was the Tory Party. It reflected the attitudes of a rural land owning class, and championed the institutions of the monarchy, the Anglican Church, the family, and property as the best defence of the social order. In the early stages of the industrial revolution, it seemed to be totally opposed to a process that seemed to undermine some of these bulwarks. The new industrial elite were seen by many as enemies to the social order. Robert Peel was able to reconcile the new industrial class to the Tory landed class by persuading the latter to accept the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846. He created a new political group that sought to preserve the old status quo while accepting the basics of laissez-faire and free trade. The new coalition of traditional landowners and sympathetic industrialists constituted the new Conservative Party.

Benjamin Disraeli gave the new party a political ideology. As a young man, he was influenced by the romantic movement and medievalism, and developed a devastating critique of industrialism. In his novels, he outlined an England divided into two nations, each living in perfect ignorance of each other. He foresaw, like Karl Marx, the phenomenon of an alienated industrial proletariat. His solution involved a return to an idealised view of a corporate or organic society, in which everyone had duties and responsibilities towards other people or groups. This "one nation" conservatism is still a significant tradition in British politics. It has animated a great deal of social reform undertaken by successive Conservative governments.

Although nominally a Conservative, Disraeli was sympathetic to some of the demands of the Chartists and argued for an alliance between the landed aristocracy and the working class against the increasing power of the middle class, helping to found the Young England group in 1842 to promote the view that the rich should use their power to protect the poor from exploitation by the middle class. The conversion of the Conservative Party into a modern mass organisation was accelerated by the concept of Tory Democracy attributed to Lord Randolph Churchill.

David Cameron, the leader of Conservative Party.

A Liberal-Conservative coalition during World War I, coupled with the ascent of the Labour Party, hastened the collapse of the Liberals in the 1920s. After World War II, the Conservative Party made concessions to the socialist policies of the Left. This compromise was a pragmatic measure to regain power, but also the result of the early successes of central planning and state ownership forming a cross-party consensus. This was known as Butskellism, after the almost identical Keynesian policies of Rab Butler on behalf of the Conservatives, and Hugh Gaitskell for Labour.

However, in the 1980s, under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, and the influence of Keith Joseph, there was a dramatic shift in the ideological direction of British conservatism, with a movement towards free-market economic policies. As one commentator explains, "The privatization of state owned industries, unthinkable before, became commonplace [during Thatcher's government] and has now been imitated all over the world."

Some commentators have questioned whether Thatcherism was consistent with the traditional concept of conservatism in the United Kingdom, and saw her views as more consistent with classical liberalism. Thatcher was described as "a radical in a conservative party", and her ideology has been seen as confronting "established institutions" and the "accepted beliefs of the elite", both concepts incompatible with the traditional conception of conservatism as signifying support for the established order and existing social convention.

United States

Main article: Conservatism in the United States

Conservatism in the United States includes a variety of political ideologies including fiscal conservatism, supply-side economics, social conservatism, libertarian conservatism, bioconservatism and religious conservatism, as well as support for a strong military. Modern American conservatism was largely born out of alliance between classical liberals and social conservatives in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Important American conservatives include William F. Buckley and Barry Goldwater.

US president Ronald Reagan, who was a self-declared conservative, is widely seen as a symbol of American conservatism. In an interview, he said "I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism." Organizations in the US committed to promoting conservative ideology include the American Conservative Union, Eagle Forum, Heritage Foundation and the Hoover Institution. US-based media outlets that are conservative include Human Events, National Review, The American Conservative, Policy Review, and The Weekly Standard.

In the US, social conservatives emphasize traditional views of social units such as the family, church, or locale. Social conservatism may entail defining marriage as relationships between one man and one woman (thereby prohibiting same-sex marriage and polygamy) and laws placing restrictions on the practice of abortion. While many religious conservatives believe that government should have a role in defending moral values, libertarian conservatives such as Barry Goldwater advocated a hands-off government where social values were concerned.

Psychology

A meta-analysis of research literature by Jost, Glaser, Kruglanski, and Sulloway in 2003 claimed that many factors, such as intolerance of ambiguity and need for cognitive closure, contribute to the degree of one's political conservatism. The study also stated that these traits "might be associated with such generally valued characteristics as personal commitment and unwavering loyalty," and that while both liberals and conservatives are resistant to change; liberals have a higher tolerance.

According to psychologist Robert Altemeyer, individuals who are politically conservative tend to rank high in Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) on his RWA scale. A study done on Israeli and Palestinian students in Israel found that RWA scores of right-wing party supporters were significantly higher than those of left-wing party supporters. However, a 2005 study by H. Michael Crowson and colleagues suggested a moderate gap between RWA and other conservative positions. While it was true that RWA partially mediated the relationship between cognitive rigidity and mainstream conservatism, "The results indicated that conservatism is not synonymous with RWA."

Psychologist Felicia Pratto and her colleagues have found evidence to support the idea that a high Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) is strongly correlated with conservative political views, and opposition to social engineering to promote equality Pratto and her colleagues found that high SDO scores were highly correlated with measures of prejudice. The were supported in this claim by David J. Schneider, who wrote that "correlations between prejudice and political conservative are reduced virtually to zero when controls for SDO are instituted" and by Kenneth Minogue who wrote "It is characteristic of the conservative temperament to value established identities, to praise habit and to respect prejudice, not because it is irrational, but because such things anchor the darting impusles of human beings in solidities of custom which we do not often begin to value until we are already losing them. Radicalism often generates youth movements, while conservatism is a condition found among the mature, who have discovered what it is in life they most value."

Another study stated that opposition is not based on racism or sexism, but on a "principled conservatism," a perspective based on "concern for equity, color-blindness, and genuine conservative values." Furthermore, the study suggested that racism and conservatism are independent, and weakly correlated among the highly educated. In an effort to examine the relationship between education, SDO, and racism, Sidanius and his colleagues conducted a survey in which subjects were asked about their political and social attitudes. Results indicated partial support for the principled-conservatism position, in that racism was not the primary force for opposition to policies such as affirmative action. However, contrary to predictions, correlations among SDO, political conservatism, and racism were strongest among the most well educated, and weakest among the least well educated.

See also

'And' theory of conservatism Black conservatism Conservative Revolutionary movement Political spectrum Reactionary Right-wing politics Toryism

References

Further reading

• Our Culture, What's Left of It: The Mandarins and the Masses / Theodore Dalrymple (2005) ISBN 1566636434
• Fascists and conservatives : the radical right and the establishment in twentieth-century Europe / Martin Blinkhorn., 1990
• Edmund Burke. Reflections on the Revolution in France, Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. October 1997: ISBN 0-87220-020-5 (paper).
• Crunden, Robert, The Superfluous Men: Critics of American Culture, 1900–1945, 1999. ISBN 1-882926-30-7
• Recent conservative political thought : American perspectives / Russell G Fryer., 1979
• Paul E. Gottfried, The Conservative Movement, 1993. ISBN 0-8057-9749-1
• The British Right : Conservative and right wing politics in Britain / Neill Nugent., 1977
• America alone : the neo-conservatives and the global order / Stefan A Halper., 2004
• Ted Honderich Conservatism
• Russell Kirk, The Conservative Mind, 7th Ed., 2001. ISBN 0-89526-171-5
• Russell Kirk, The Politics of Prudence, 1993. ISBN 1-882926-01-3
• The conservative press in twentieth-century America / Ronald Lora., 1999
• From the New Deal to the New Right: race and the southern origins of modern conservatism / Joseph E Lowndes., 2008
• Jerry Z. Muller Conservatism
• Right-wing women : from conservatives to extremists around the world / P Bacchetta., 2002
• Unmaking law : the Conservative campaign to roll back the common law / Jay M Feinman., 2004
• Radicals or conservatives? The contemporary American right / James McEvoy., 1971
• Robert Nisbet Conservatism: Dream and Reality, 2001. ISBN 0-7658-0862-5
• James Page, 'Ought the Neo-Cons Be Considered Conservatives? A Philosophical Response'.AQ: Journal of Contemporary Analysis. 75(6):32-33/40. 2003; available on-line at http://eprints.qut.edu.au/archive/00003599/
• Conservatism in America since 1930 : a reader / Gregory L Schneider., 2003
• Noel O'Sullivan Conservatism
• The new racism : conservatives and the ideology of the tribe / Martin Barker., 1982
• A time for choosing : the rise of modern American conservatism / Jonathan M Schoenwald., 2001
• Roger Scruton The Meaning of Conservatism
• Facing fascism : the Conservative party and the European dictators, 1935–1940 / N J Crowson., 1997
• James Fitzjames Stephen, Liberty, Equality, Fraternity.

External links

• Dictionary of the History of Ideas, Conservatism.
• Dutch conservative weblogs (mostly in Dutch).