Political Orientation and Personality
SimilarMinds test data on the personality patterns associated with conservative and liberal political orientation.
In SimilarMinds data, conservative self-identification loads strongly with a broader personality factor labeled Sectarian. This factor also includes themes involving nationalism, traditionalism, social order, hierarchy, group loyalty, security, and skepticism toward cultural change.
Liberal or progressive political identification generally appears on the opposite end of that factor, but it does not form an equally narrow mirror-image personality drive. Instead, left-leaning responses overlap with several other orientations, including cultural openness, egalitarianism, artistic interests, environmental concern, and support for minority protections.
How I Interpret the Factor
Sectarian / Conservative-Associated Pole
The high end of the factor emphasizes national and cultural loyalty, preservation of established institutions and traditions, stronger authority, social hierarchy, property rights, military and police support, personal responsibility, and preference for social uniformity.
Globalistic / Liberal-Associated Pole
The low end is more strongly associated with progressive political identity, cultural diversity, minority rights, internationalism, environmental regulation, criminal-justice reform, labor rights, anti-war attitudes, and greater artistic or imaginative interests.
I view the conservative-associated pattern as a meaningful personality dimension rather than merely a collection of political opinions. However, that interpretation should not be confused with a claim that every conservative shares every characteristic listed here, or that every liberal represents the exact psychological opposite.
Political identification is influenced by personality, culture, family, religion, economics, geography, historical events, and many other forces. The correlations below describe how responses cluster in this dataset; they do not by themselves establish why a person holds a particular political belief.
Sectarian Average Scores by Demographic Group
Scores use the SimilarMinds 0–6 response scale. The test-taking population is young overall, with an average age of approximately 21.35, so these averages should not be treated as population estimates.
| Group | Average Score | Approx. Sample |
|---|---|---|
| Female | 2.91 | — |
| Male | 3.35 | — |
| Age 13–18 | 3.19 | 90,000 |
| Age 19–25 | 2.99 | 73,000 |
| Age 26–35 | 2.98 | 21,000 |
| Age 36–45 | 3.15 | 9,500 |
| Age 46–55 | 3.33 | 3,500 |
| Age 56–65 | 3.45 | 1,500 |
| Age 66+ | 3.53 | 500 |
In this sample, men score higher than women on average, and scores are generally higher among older respondents. Because SimilarMinds users are self-selected rather than a representative probability sample, the demographic values are descriptive of this dataset rather than estimates for the entire population.
Items Loading Toward the Conservative / Sectarian Pole
| Item | Average | Factor Score |
|---|---|---|
| I identify as politically conservative. | 1.7 | 700 |
| I want my country to be more powerful than other countries. | 2.0 | 690 |
| I feel strong pride in my country. | 2.3 | 690 |
| I consider myself patriotic. | 1.7 | 690 |
| I identify as a nationalist. | 1.6 | 670 |
| I usually prefer conservative or right-leaning candidates. | 1.7 | 670 |
| I favor higher military spending. | 1.8 | 670 |
| Protecting my country's traditional identity matters to me. | 1.6 | 670 |
| Society should not be reorganized extensively around very small minorities. | 2.4 | 660 |
| I see my country as better than most others. | 2.3 | 650 |
| Patriotism is an important value. | 2.1 | 640 |
| My country should extend its influence abroad when useful. | 2.0 | 640 |
| I see my nation as exceptional. | 2.3 | 640 |
| Betraying one's country is among the worst offenses. | 1.9 | 640 |
| I consider myself traditional. | 2.0 | 630 |
| Keeping my country strong is very important. | 2.6 | 630 |
| Property owners should have broad rights to defend their property. | 3.4 | 620 |
| I would risk my life defending my country. | 1.5 | 620 |
| I believe the COVID-19 vaccine was developed too quickly. | 2.9 | 610 |
| Ethnic groups are often better off maintaining separate communities. | 2.4 | 610 |
| I am uncomfortable with foreigners. | 1.0 | 600 |
| Social hierarchy and inequality are natural. | 2.9 | 600 |
| My country's interests should come first. | 1.4 | 600 |
| I prefer romantic partners who respect my conservative values. | 2.7 | 610 |
| Biological sex is fundamentally binary. | 3.9 | 580 |
| Nations function best with a unified national identity. | 2.25 | 570 |
| Military service should be broadly expected. | 1.5 | 580 |
| A strong culture relies on practices that have worked in the past. | 2.4 | 560 |
| I am devoted to my country. | 2.0 | 560 |
| I have a high level of respect for the military. | 3.6 | 560 |
| Citizens have important obligations to their country. | 3.2 | 550 |
| People sometimes need strong external discipline. | 3.7 | 550 |
| Hierarchy is important to a functioning society. | 2.5 | 540 |
| More incarceration can sometimes improve social order. | 2.3 | 540 |
| Government needs enough authority to maintain control. | 2.9 | 530 |
| Traditional national culture is disappearing too quickly. | 2.9 | 530 |
| I respect police officers. | 2.8 | 530 |
| National pride is generally positive. | 3.0 | 520 |
| I would rather live in a culturally homogeneous country. | 2.2 | 520 |
| Strict rule is sometimes necessary. | 2.2 | 520 |
| Traditional values are worth actively defending. | 2.2 | 520 |
| The justice system should be tough on crime. | 3.6 | 510 |
| Children need firm discipline. | 4.1 | 510 |
| Economic development can matter more than environmental protection. | 1.9 | 510 |
| The government should protect the established social order. | 2.7 | 500 |
| People should bear more personal responsibility for health-care costs. | 3.5 | 500 |
| Traditional values are important to me. | 2.8 | 500 |
| Personal failure explains much of why some people do not succeed. | 2.9 | 500 |
| Equality is sometimes overvalued. | 1.9 | 490 |
| Government should have strong authority over citizens' behavior. | 2.0 | 490 |
| The private sector should have more power than the public sector. | 2.3 | 490 |
| I would prefer a return to a more traditional society. | 1.8 | 490 |
| I support capital punishment. | 3.2 | 480 |
| Capitalism is my preferred economic system. | 2.7 | 480 |
| Authoritarian government can sometimes function effectively. | 2.2 | 470 |
| Welfare spending should be reduced. | 1.9 | 470 |
| Children should be highly obedient to their parents. | 3.1 | 470 |
| I want to live in a country that reflects my own culture. | 3.0 | 470 |
| People should generally stay within familiar cultural groups. | 3.0 | 460 |
| Physical punishment can be an acceptable form of child discipline. | 1.9 | 460 |
| I am politically traditional. | 2.2 | 500 |
| Some cultures are better than others. | 2.9 | 450 |
| People need to be toughened by the world. | 4.2 | 450 |
| Strong authority is often needed to make people behave correctly. | 2.7 | 450 |
| The market should largely determine prices. | 1.9 | 440 |
| I believe personal responsibility matters more than collective responsibility. | 3.9 | 270 |
| A certain amount of freedom may need to be traded for law and order. | 3.6 | 270 |
Items Loading Toward the Liberal / Globalistic Pole
Negative factor scores indicate items associated with the opposite end of the same factor. These responses are more strongly associated with progressive politics, multiculturalism, minority rights, environmental regulation, anti-war attitudes, and related orientations in this dataset.
| Item | Average | Factor Score |
|---|---|---|
| I prefer liberal or left-leaning candidates. | 3.7 | -620 |
| My politics are left-leaning. | 3.5 | -580 |
| I prefer progressive candidates. | 3.4 | -570 |
| I support LGBTQ culture. | 4.5 | -550 |
| I support transgender rights. | 4.1 | -540 |
| Police should face strong limits on lethal-force authority. | 3.1 | -510 |
| Being suspicious of foreigners is wrong. | 3.4 | -490 |
| People should not be expected to sacrifice themselves for their country. | 3.5 | -470 |
| I support a multi-ethnic society. | 4.7 | -470 |
| I respect customs from cultures other than my own. | 4.7 | -470 |
| I respect religions other than my own. | 4.4 | -460 |
| I would generally choose a liberal candidate over a conservative one. | 3.9 | -450 |
| Cultural diversity is important. | 4.5 | -450 |
| I experience emotions intensely. | 3.2 | -440 |
| Racism remains an important social problem. | 5.1 | -440 |
| Cultural appropriation can be harmful. | 4.1 | -420 |
| Disability rights are important. | 5.0 | -400 |
| Anti-war activism appeals to me. | 2.8 | -400 |
| Environmental pollution should be strongly regulated. | 4.8 | -400 |
| My country's military budget is too high. | 3.3 | -390 |
| I enjoy artistic work such as music, acting, art, or design. | 3.5 | -360 |
| I enjoy getting lost in thought. | 3.2 | -350 |
| Education should receive more public funding. | 4.7 | -330 |
| I would avoid living in a country that was intolerant of other cultures. | 4.5 | -320 |
| Diversity is a strength. | 4.4 | -320 |
| I enjoy reading fiction, plays, or poetry. | 3.4 | -300 |
| I prefer electric cars to gasoline cars. | 2.8 | -290 |
| Criminal-justice reform is important. | 4.4 | -280 |
| Resources should be divided fairly. | 4.1 | -270 |
| Labor unions are important. | 3.1 | -260 |
| I would like to work for a nonprofit organization. | 2.4 | -240 |
Method and Limitations
- Responses use a 0–6 scale ranging from very inaccurate to very accurate.
- Individual item samples on the current page are generally in the range of roughly 5,000–20,000 test takers.
- Factor scores are similar in interpretation to correlations with the underlying personality factor.
- The sample is self-selected and substantially younger than the general population.
- Political labels change across countries and over time, so "conservative" and "liberal" should not be treated as perfectly fixed categories.
The broader personality-system background and factor-analysis approach are described on the Personality Research page. You can also compare the Sectarian and Globalistic trait descriptions directly.