Tradition
The view that the state has a role in preserving traditional values, practices and culture. For example, the view that the state should align to a religion.Stability
Resistance to change. For example, the view that a constitution that is several hundred years old should be interpreted exactly as written.Community Rights
A prioritization of community rights over individual rights. For example, conservatives may stress the duty of individuals to society. This can be contrasted to liberalism that may stress the obligations of society to the individual.Safety & Security
Strong support for law, order and military initiatives and spending.Institutions
Preservation of institutions and resistance to changing them. For example, conservatives that take a traditional view of the institution of family.Unchanging Government
Resistance to new types of government programs or regulations and a rollback of recent additions to government. For example, in a country that has never had public healthcare conservatives may oppose the launch of such a service.Protectionism
Due to their alignment to a particular culture and tradition, conservatives commonly adopt us vs them policies such as economic protectionism and restrictive immigration.Status Quo
Defense of the status quo including the defense of the interests of the current elites of a society. For example, a conservative government may have close ties with large firms and seek to secure their interests against new competition.Reactionism
Policies designed to rollback social changes that have already occurred to revert back to the old ways.Fiscal Conservatism
The view that taxes should be low, budgets balanced and government spending tightly controlled. Conservatives may call for a small government, particularly in areas such as social programs, but may support certain types of spending such as military spending.Notes
This is a general overview of conservative political ideologies. The values of actual political parties that are considered conservative may differ greatly from this summary. It should be noted that conservatives are quite diverse. For example, it is possible to be socially conservative but economically liberal or vice versa.As conservatives value continuation with the past, their views differ greatly based on national context such as tradition, culture and history.| Overview: Conservatism | ||
Type | ||
Definition | A political ideology that prioritizes tradition and stability. | |
Related Concepts | ||
