The claim that conservatives are happier than Leftists, as highlighted in the Breitbart article citing Nate Silver's analysis of a 60,000-person survey, has been a recurring theme in social science research. The survey shows conservatives consistently report better mental health (51% rating it "excellent" vs. 20% of liberals) and higher happiness across demographics, with conservatives averaging 68 on a 0-100 well-being scale compared to liberals' 53. My argument explaining this, is that the happiness gap stems from the sheer incoherence of Leftism and its lack of common sense on life's basics. Conservatives' happiness advantage arises from their ideological coherence, grounded in acceptance of human nature and practical realities, contrasted with Leftism's internal contradictions and detachment from foundational principles.
Conservatism, at its core, embraces human nature as imperfect, hierarchical, and resistant to utopian overhaul. This acceptance fosters happiness by reducing the friction between expectation and reality. Conservatives view societal structures, family, tradition, markets, and meritocracy, as organic outcomes of human behaviour, not as malleable constructs to be endlessly reengineered. The Breitbart article articulates this as conservatives "making peace with human nature's messiness," allowing them to "live and let live." This mindset minimises the emotional toll of trying to control the uncontrollable, a key to psychological well-being.
For example, conservatives often prioritise personal responsibility and agency, believing that hard work and adherence to norms lead to success. Research supports this: conservatives express greater personal control, optimism, and belief in fairness, which correlate with higher life satisfaction. This aligns with common-sense basics, work hard, build stable relationships, respect boundaries, which anchor conservatives in predictable, rewarding life patterns. The General Social Survey (1972–2014) consistently shows conservatives reporting higher happiness (e.g., 61% of Republicans vs. 47% of Democrats).
In contrast, Leftism often rejects these basics as outdated or oppressive, advocating for systemic change to achieve equity. This creates a cognitive burden: Leftists must constantly reconcile their belief in human equality with the persistent inequalities of biology, culture, and behavior. The incoherence lies in demanding outcomes (e.g., perfect equity) that clash with observable realities (e.g., individual differences). This dissonance fuels frustration, as Leftists perceive the world as perpetually unjust, eroding their sense of agency and happiness.
Leftist ideology, particularly in its modern progressive form, is riddled with contradictions that undermine psychological stability. For instance, Leftism champions individual autonomy (e.g., gender identity, lifestyle choices) while simultaneously demanding collective conformity to social justice norms (e.g., speech codes, cancel culture). This tension creates a mental tightrope: one must be "authentic" yet adhere to rigid groupthink, leading to alienation and anxiety. The Breitbart article's depiction of Leftists as "humourless prigs" obsessed with controlling behaviour (e.g., over language like "illegal" vs. "undocumented") captures this rigidity, which stifles joy.
Another incoherence is Leftism's rejection of universal moral clarity in favour of relativism, yet its zealous enforcement of new moral dogmas. Transcendent moral beliefs, more common among conservatives, provide purpose and reduce normlessness, while relativistic codes foster alienation. Leftists' shifting moral landscape, where yesterday's ally can be today's oppressor, creates a sense of instability, undermining the common-sense anchor of consistent values. For example, the focus on identity politics, as Yancey's 2021 Baylor Religion Survey suggests, correlates with higher depression and anxiety among progressives, as it amplifies perceived oppression and external locus of control.
On life's basics, family, work, community, Leftism often dismisses traditional structures as patriarchal or capitalist, yet offers no coherent alternatives. Liberal women, for instance, report lower satisfaction with life and mental health (15% vs. 31% of conservative women in the 2022 American Family Survey), possibly due to delayed marriage or career-family conflicts encouraged by progressive ideals. Conservatives, by valuing marriage and religion, maintain social bonds that buffer stress, as seen in their lower neuroticism scores compared to liberals.
Conservatism's happiness edge lies in its practical, common-sense approach to life's fundamentals. Conservatives value tangible outcomes, stable families, economic self-reliance, community ties, over abstract ideals. The 60,000-person survey shows this holds across demographics, suggesting ideology, not privilege, drives the gap. For example, conservatives' belief in meritocracy, as Napier notes, correlates strongly with happiness, as it empowers individuals to focus on what they can control.
Leftism, conversely, often values systemic critique over practical solutions, leading to a sense of futility. The survey's finding that 45% of liberals report poor mental health aligns with their heightened sensitivity to social inequities, which Lahtinen's 2024 study links to depression and anxiety among those with critical social justice attitudes. This focus on external woke problems, climate change, systemic racism, can overwhelm, as progressives feel responsible for fixing intractable issues, a mindset less common among conservatives who emphasise personal agency over political correctness.
Leftism's dismissal of common-sense basics, like biological sex or economic incentives, further compounds its incoherence. For instance, advocating for policies that ignore sex-based differences (e.g., in sports or prisons) or demonising wealth creation while expecting prosperity, creates cognitive dissonance. Conservatives, by accepting these realities, avoid the mental strain of denying what's evident, fostering a grounded, happier outlook.
Silver's three theories, liberals' conscientiousness about suffering, their own oppression, or performative misery, are unconvincing. First, if liberals were simply more empathetic, their happiness wouldn't plummet so drastically; empathy should coexist with personal well-being. Second, the survey shows the happiness gap persists across income, race, and sexual orientation, undermining the "oppression" argument. Third, performative misery may amplify discontent, but it doesn't explain the gap's consistency over decades.
Another counterargument is that conservatives' happiness reflects privilege or self-deception. However, studies control for demographics, and conservatives' lower neuroticism and higher agency persist among less advantaged groups. Wojcik's 2015 study suggesting conservatives self-enhance is intriguing but contradicted by liberals' higher rates of diagnosed depression, indicating genuine distress, not just honest reporting.
Religiosity and marriage, while correlated with happiness, don't fully explain the gap, as the survey shows it holds even among secular or single conservatives. The ideological coherence of conservatism, its acceptance of life's messiness and focus on what works, remains the strongest driver.
Conservatives are happier than Leftists because their ideology is coherent, practical, and aligned with human nature's realities, fostering agency, purpose, and acceptance. The 60,000-person survey's stark gap, 68 vs. 53 on a well-being scale, reflects this, persisting across all demographics. Leftism's incoherence, marked by contradictory ideals, moral relativism, and rejection of common-sense basics like family or merit, breeds discontent by pitting its adherents against an unchangeable world. Conservatives laugh at the "yard full of chickens," finding joy in its disorder of individuality; Leftists, desperate to herd them with collectivism, choose misery. To close the gap, Leftists would need to embrace the practical wisdom of life's fundamentals, but their ideological rigidity makes this pretty unlikely.
"Across every possible social characteristic (race, income, age, religion, sex, and even political activity), a 60,000-person survey shows conservatives are much happier than leftists, reports Nate Silver.
When asked about the status of their own mental health, only 20 percent of liberals said it was excellent, compared to 51 percent of conservatives. Meanwhile, 45 percent of liberals said their mental health was poor, compared to just 19 percent of conservatives.
Look at that — nearly half of liberals say they have poor mental health.
And I believe them.
Using these 60,000 people and a 0-100 scale (zero for poor mental health, 100 for excellent mental health), this gap between left and right persisted across every possible demographic.
"The average American self-reports at a 60 on this scale: in other words, somewhere between good and very good mental health. But liberals average a score of 53 and conservatives a 68," Silver explains. "As you can see, the liberal-conservative gap is fairly consistent across all of these characteristics."
Here are those characteristics:
All the characteristics you might believe explain this happiness gap, don't — at least according to this study. Religion? Nope. Marriage? Nope. Income? Nope. Political activity? Nope. Sexual orientation? Nope. Social media activity? Nope.
Does this mean it really comes down to the fact that leftists are just a whole lot more neurotic and unhappy than people on the right?
I think it does.
Silver lays out three theories to explain this, which I believe are completely wrong.
"Liberals are more conscientious about the suffering of other people or the conditions of the world, whereas conservatives are happy but selfish."
"[Liberals are] struggling or oppressed themselves and therefore favor change and a larger role for government."
"Liberals may express negative sentiment as a sign of solidarity with a movement that thinks there is profound injustice in the world. But then this can snowball — misery loves company — while attracting some number of people who face serious mental health challenges."
Here's the real reason for the happiness gap…
Conservatives understand human nature and have made peace with it. What I mean is that we get that human nature is messy, complicated, impossible to control, and therefore there's not much we can do about it. So all we want from the world (and our government) is to be left alone. "Live and let live" is not only our motto, but it is also an attitude that breeds happiness. Giving up your desire to control what you cannot control is one of the four secrets to happiness. The other three are having a work ethic, not taking yourself seriously, and being grateful for what you have.
Leftists are genetically predisposed to a totalitarian streak where they must control everyone's behavior within their confining idea of justice. This desire to control what cannot be controlled (human nature) breeds their unhappiness. How can anyone be happy if they get angry over someone misgendering someone else, someone voting a certain way, someone using the word "bossy," or someone pointing and laughing at the six-foot steel pole jammed up their ass?
If there is one common trait among leftists, it's that anyone coloring outside their behavior lines angers and frustrates them. This means they allow others to control their emotions (i.e. they get angry at someone using the term "illegal" instead of "undocumented"). People who are constantly angry and frustrated can never be happy.
Then there's the fact that leftists have no sense of humor about themselves. A sense of humor is my first instinctive identifier.
Think back to your school days. Who were the unhappiest students? It was always the tattle-tale and the hall monitor — the bossypants kid who tried to enforce all the rules.
It's the same in real life.
These humorless prigs key Teslas, wear pussy hats, and use COVID to rat out neighbors. It's all about control and having a tantrum when they lose control. Leftists are spoiled babies.
Bottom line…
Conservatives look at the world as a yard full of chickens and not only chuckle at the disorder, but find comfort in that disorder, for it means every chicken is allowed to do its own thing.
Leftists look at that same yard full of chickens and choose to live a miserable life attempting to herd them."