Researchers studied parents in eight countries.
QUICK FACTS:
- Studies of citizens in eight countries concluded that childless adults were more likely to support homosexuality, abortion, and promiscuity, while parents were overall more conservative.
- Researchers studied individuals from the United States, Chile, Australia, South Korea, Poland, Japan, Denmark, and Serbia to reach their conclusion.
- The multi-study paper was entitled “Experimental and cross-cultural evidence that parenthood and parental care motives increase social conservatism,” and was published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
- The study indicated that the “motivation to care for children is consequently among the fundamental drivers of human behaviour, but its power to shape social attitudes and cognition is under-appreciated.”
- According to the research, having children (or the desire to care for children) not only directly correlates with the development of social attitudes but also appears to be influenced by one’s child-to-parent ratio.
STUDY DETAILS:
- One report on the study indicated that the phrase “you’ll feel differently when you have kids of your own” was apparently backed by science.
- The studies revealed “cross-cultural and experimental evidence suggesting that parental care motivation leads to increases in socially conservative attitudes, and that parenthood is associated with social conservatism around the globe.”
- The research analyzed 2,610 people in 10 countries and arched over 400,000 individuals in 88 countries.
BACKGROUND:
- In addition to children having an impact on politics, it appears that politics can have an impact on attitude.
- A recent study indicated that American conservatives are happier than American liberals. Conservatives also report finding greater meaning and purpose in life and life satisfaction.
- Marriage also tends to make people happier, and conservatives are more likely to be married. Religion is also said to play a part in overall feelings of happiness.
