Findings published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin by the University of Toronto reveal that compassion and equality is associated with a liberal mindset, while order and respect of social norms is associated with a conservative mindset.
Our data shows that liberalism is more often associated with the underlying motives for compassion, empathy and equality.
Conservatives tend to be higher in a personality trait called orderliness and lower in openness. This means that they’re more concerned about a sense of order and tradition, expressing a deep psychological motive to preserve the current social structure.
There are costs and benefits to each political profile and both appear critical to maintaining an effective balance in society.