Glenn discusses a new study showing conservatives are happier and have better marriages than liberals.
Numerous studies have shown conservatives tend to champion marriage and family values alongside traditional family roles, while liberals tend to value independence, singleness, and non-traditional gender roles. As Glenn said on yesterday's radio program:
Republicans and Democrats view gender roles dramatically differently—we understand that there are only two genders. Republicans tend to embrace traditional gender roles, while Democrats tend to question them.
The results are the same across the board: marriage, family, and traditional gender roles result in greater levels of happiness than those values heralded by liberals.
Here are 9 facts from the studies showing that, contrary to our cultural narrative, the values championed by conservatives are the foundation for building a happy and fulfilling life.
Republicans are more satisfied in their relationships than Democrats.
According to a new study conducted in affiliation with the American Enterprise Institute, Republican men report being the most satisfied in their marriages out of those surveyed (48 percent). Republican women are in a close second at 42 percent.
Married Democrat women are the most dissatisfied with their relationship.
In contrast, according to the same study, Republican married couples, only 29 percent of Democrat married women say they are completely satisfied with their relationship. Only 36 percent of Democrat married men say they are satisfied.
The "Republican Advantage" in marriage is across the board.
Studies have shown that the Republican advantage in relationship satisfaction holds even regardless of differences in "educational attainment, race and ethnicity, age, and religious affiliation."
The "Republican Advantage" stems from conservatives championing "family-first" values.
Studies have found that conservatives are more likely to embrace the "family-first" values that direct them towards marriage and fulfilling family lives.
Married couples in general report more satisfaction in their relationships than Americans in other types of relationships.
40 percent of married Americans report being “completely” satisfied with their relationship with their spouse, compared to 33 percent of cohabitating couples and only 24 percent of those in committed relationships who are not living together.
Democrats, on the other hand, champion values that steer them away from marriage.
Unlike conservatives who champion family-first values, Democrats are drawn to individualist values and believe independence, freedom, and work will make them happy. For example, the left-leaning publication Bloomberg published an anecdotally-based survey of women titled, "Women Who Stay Single and Don’t Have Kids Are Getting Richer” and featured childless, single women who claim personal happiness. Liberal media also celebrates singleness and divorce compared to marriage and family.
Conservatives are more likely to be married than liberals.
Conservatives aged 18-55 are 20 percent more likely to be married than liberals. This comes as little surprise because, as mentioned previously, conservatives tend to champion "family-first" values that steer them towards marriage. Liberals, on the other hand, are more likely to remain single.
Conservatives are more likely to be satisfied with their families than liberals.
Conservatives are 18 percent more likely to be satisfied with their families than liberals. Studies show that liberals tend to reverse gender roles, with the "stay-at-home husband" trend complementing the "working woman." Research has shown this type of role reversal leads to a greater sense of dissatisfaction in marriage than traditional gender roles typically held by conservatives.
Liberals more likely to struggle with their mental health than conservatives.
Liberals are about 19 percent less likely to be “completely satisfied” with their mental health than conservatives. W. Bradford Wilcox, a senior fellow of the Institute for Family Studies and University of Virginia professor of sociology, attributes the disparity in overall happiness between conservatives and liberals to their differing views in marital status and family satisfaction. He wrote, "The secret to happiness, for most men and women, involves marriage and a life based around the family. " It is no wonder that both conservative men and women who champion family-first values report higher levels of happiness than liberal counterparts.
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