Ideologia i polityka społeczna: omówienie lekcji

Jak bardzo powinien interweniować rząd w celu promowania równości społeczno- gospodarczej? Do jakiego stopnia polityka rządu powinna respektować prawo do prywatności i promować tradycyjną moralność? Czy dopuszczalne jest ograniczanie wolności osobistych w celu ochrony bezpieczeństwa publicznego?

How citizens respond to these questions can reveal sharp divides in their opinions on the appropriate role of government in shaping society, known as social policy.

Derived partly from shared interpretations of core values like equality of opportunity and limited government and partly from responses to historical events, approaches to social policy differ across the ideological spectrum.

Of course, individuals vary in their beliefs, and even someone who identifies strongly with one political party might not endorse every aspect of its platform. Likewise, ideologies are constantly changing and adapting to new political realities. However, political scientists can make some generalizations about the social policy approaches of liberals, conservatives, and libertarians:

Liberals tend to favor more government intervention in order to promote social and economic equality. For example, liberals endorse minimum wage laws, arguing that without government intervention businesses will take advantage of employees and economic inequality will increase. On the other hand, liberals tend to oppose government intervention into areas of private life, such as laws restricting contraception or same-sex marriage.

Conservatives tend to oppose government intervention in order to promote social and economic equality, arguing that the free market will reward individuals according to their talent and hard work. Conservatives also oppose government restrictions on individual liberties protected in the Bill of Rights, such as the right to bear arms. On the other hand, conservatives tend to favor government intervention to promote traditional morality, such as outlawing abortion and marijuana. They also strongly support government spending on the military and national security.

Libertarians oppose all government intervention in economic and social policy, believing that government exists to protect private property and little else. Libertarians do not believe that government should regulate morality or the free market.