Is it true that the more educated tend to be liberal?

Question

I learned in government class that the people who go to college the longest and have the highest degrees are usually liberal. The book said a possibility is that the more educated you are, the more aware you are.

If anyone would like to give an assessment I would be happy to read them.

I wasn't making a reflection on elected partisan officials. I'm not saying Republican policy is uneducated and I'm not saying Democratic policy is superior. I was speaking on terms of non-government officials who have higher degrees.

Answer 1

This is a multivariant statistical misconception. There are a greater number of liberal academicians than conservative. To be a member of that group requires that you have a higher degree than the average professional (ie Ph.D.). Therefore it can be erroneously argued that the more educated you are, the more likely you are to be liberal.

Just because more educators are liberals, does not mean they are more liberal because they have higher education. The higher education is a function of their chosen profession, not of their political ideology.

Thanks.

Answer 2

When school is finished, you should have learned how to learn. Learning should continue for as long as you live. "Conservatives" have strong opinions and convictions, but know little. Conservatives want to control everyone else. In their click of control, everyone would be required to wear red socks. Liberals believe the best economic foundation is that of Capitalism and Lazie-fare?

It's possible to be highly intelligent and educated without being all that smart. Smart people can do dumb things or have little respect for the big picture. Make lots of money, have the power of the Presidency, and ruin the country. It is reasonable to understand that some people of low intellect will identify with the big guys and see themselves as being top dogs also.

Some decisions of the past illustrate this point. Most of our electric and fuel needs could have been made free today if big business and politicians had not elected to withhold those inventions so they could make more money. In 1965 the US Army had a new vehicle that used water as the fuel. That had to be held back as it would have just ruined everything.

There's no reason to think that liberals actually are smarter than conservatives; there is plenty of brainpower on the political right. And surely Bush's and Schwarzenegger's detractors are mistaken when they characterize them as dull. The president, after all, is a graduate of both Yale and Harvard, and the governor-elect is a self-made immigrant businessman. Yet, they are obviously lacking something.

Answer 3

People comming out of colleges with left-leaning faculties are going to produce liberals. Whether or not these people received a proper education is another thing.

When education becomes political indoctrination, people can be made to believe almost anything, it if is presented properly.

We have people comming out of the law schools who are taught the concept of the Constitution as a "living document". These people have very little knowledge of the Constitution.

I am not a lawyer. I have never been to law school, but I got into a discussion with a lawyer. He told me that Supreme Court justices have a lifetime appointment. I told him that the Constitution specified that they serve during "good behavior", in other words, they can be removed (Article 3, Section 1).

I have a cousin who has two masters degrees, including one in economics. He considers himself a conservative, and yet he doesn't understand what thousands of years of human experience have taught: gold and silver are money. Non-redeemable fiat money is not. This is what is taught today in the public schools, and the majority of secondary schools.

People graduate from college and they have no idea of how the Electoral College works, or why we have it. They are all for abolishing it. That's what they have been taught.

Unfortunately, a college education doesn't really mean much anymore. When people are indoctrinated with political-economic ideology rather than being taught to think for themselve, college become a means to perpetuate an agenda.

Answer 4

This may have as much to do with where and how they were educated as how long they studied or how advanced their degrees are.

I don't think conservatives are less aware, but they have a very different perspective, and different assumptions about what responsibilities are the individual's, and which are the governments.

Sometimes liberals are guilty of the 'protective parent' label that conservatives place on them. Sometimes liberals see that the community as a whole suffers more, or spends more, when certain problems aren't addressed early in their development and see government as the best agent.

Even before the conservative reign that began with Reagan's election, prison populations were increasing very quickly.

I am very liberal and have a masters degree. I don't believe I'm more aware than many conservatives. I do want to address the problems I'm aware of differently than conservatives.

Answer 5

yes.
it has nothing to do with awareness however. it is the result of a kind of a machine that has its own life. colleges must produce liberals in order to keep the government money coming in. if they actively produced conservatives or if they didn't care one way or another and allowed students to make up their own minds about politics there would not be enough liberal voters and politicians to keep the money rolling in.
look at the few colleges that do not accept government money, they produce students just as "aware" as any institution but only the willing end up liberal as there is no need for brainwashing or propaganda to keep their funds coming in.
i wonder if the book that you quote was inclusive enough to also state that the very least educated also tend to be liberal? like the very young. everyone starts off liberal, it is part of being immature and is natural and good. a child starts with no responsibility and depends on someone else for everything. adults and colleges should be responsible for themselves and not dependent on their daddy government.
their are great financial rewards for any college or individual who will submit so you cant really blame them and most of the individuals and schools who participate in this are not even aware of it, they truly believe that they are enlightened.
there are probubly a few liberals at the top who are aware of this but they did not engineer it. it is more of a syndrome than a conspiricy.
it is very much a living liberal machine. it consumes, produces waste and reproduces more of its kind.
it is probubly not a good thing.
great question!

Answer 6

Obviously few around here know how hard it is to become a professor. It takes years. Many have to take second jobs to get by. It's not an easy road taken by the lazy.

And getting a Phd. is no guarantee of getting work. My (now) PhD. professor friend at an Ivy league university had to wait tables for a few years before she got her first post. And now works 6 days a week between research, teaching, and class program prep.

Anyone who slams academics as lazy is just plain ignorant. And obviously has no educated friends.

Answer 7

It depends. For instance, if you are in college for 8, 10, 12 years they are gonna rub off on you, because there is a huge majority of Professors who are liberal. I am in college and am conservative, more so since seeing some of the stuff Professors spew out. I think for myself look at the world and have my views from experience, not what some academic tells me. Liberals live in theory. Theoretically all their ideas of socialism, communist thoughts would be ok.... except for the fact that they would never work in the real world.

Answer 8

If that statistic is true it could be caused by several factors besides awareness.

Liberals are more attracted to education. If a liberal considers education more important than other pursuits they might be willing to continue in their education longer than their conservative peers especially if they consider education an end unto itself rather than a practical necessity.

Educational institutions are full of liberals. I can't remember were I read the statistic but as many as 2/3 of university faculty members are liberal. This does not mean that there are not as many qualified conservatives capable of filling educational positions. It simply means they choose not to.

Education may lead to less awareness. Education may lead to short sightedness and overconfidence in ones knowledge. Liberalism entails that a select group of educated individuals should make decisions for the masses through bureaucratic institutions. If someone thinks they are more intelligent than others they may have corresponding belief in their own ability to determine what is best for the unwashed masses.

Educated individuals may adopt liberal philosophies to reconcile their behavior during college with their belief systems. Universities are breeding grounds for sexual and drug experimentation. Longer exposure to the university environment increases the chances of engaging in these behaviors. In order to reconcile behavior with feelings of guilt people are willing to adopt philosophies that minimize guilt or responsibility for personal choice. Liberalism generally suggests that people are not capable of making goods choices for themselves and is closely related to moral relativism.


It is important to look for lurking variables that might be the real cause of some phenomenon.

Answer 9

I think the smartest people (not all of whom are the most educated) tend to be balanced. Liberal on some issues and conservative on others. If the scales were tipped either way, I would favor liberal but only by a small margin.

Answer 10

If Liberals were educated, they would show more compassion and care towards others and would not be spreading Lies, Gossip, and Slander to others. All Liberals do is make promises that are never kept and they are hurting America with FAILED Policies. If they were educated, they would be conservative because Conservatives starts with a C for Compassion and Care with Liberals start with a L for Lazyness and Lying.