Political views of American academics: Difference between revisions
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'''Liberal bias in academia''' refers to the perception that [[academia]] has had an increasingly pronounced [[liberal bias]]. This has been a subject of controversy amongst academics and the general public alike. Whilst the debate whether liberal professors have secured an advantageous position regarding their professional development has intensified, the evidence put forward by both sides of the argument had remained largely empirical.{{clarify|date=January 2017}} Recent research has provided evidence in support of the argument that institutions of higher education do cultivate faculty bodies with predominantly liberal socio-political views.<ref>{{Citation|last1=Rothman|first1=Stanley|last2=Lichter|first2=S. Robert|last3=Nevitte|first3=Neil|title=Politics and Professional Advancement Among College Faculty|journal=The Forum|volume=3|issue=1|year=2005|doi=10.2202/1540-8884.1067|url=http://www.conservativecriminology.com/uploads/5/6/1/7/56173731/rothman_et_al.pdf}}</ref> |
'''Liberal bias in academia''' refers to the perception that [[academia]] has had an increasingly pronounced [[liberal bias]]. This has been a subject of controversy amongst academics and the general public alike. Whilst the debate whether liberal professors have secured an advantageous position regarding their professional development has intensified, the evidence put forward by both sides of the argument had remained largely empirical.{{clarify|date=January 2017}} Recent research has provided evidence in support of the argument that institutions of higher education do cultivate faculty bodies with predominantly liberal socio-political views.<ref name="Forum">{{Citation|last1=Rothman|first1=Stanley|last2=Lichter|first2=S. Robert|last3=Nevitte|first3=Neil|title=Politics and Professional Advancement Among College Faculty|journal=The Forum|volume=3|issue=1|year=2005|doi=10.2202/1540-8884.1067|url=http://www.conservativecriminology.com/uploads/5/6/1/7/56173731/rothman_et_al.pdf}}</ref> |
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==Research== |
==Research== |
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Prior to the late 1960's, speculation of the existence of liberal bias in higher education was based entirely on anecdotal reports and observations. Starting in 1969, a series of surveys and questionnaires were conducted throughout Canada and the US, which supported the previously untested speculations of the prevalence of progressive-styles of teaching amongst the majority of professors.<ref>http://yoelinbar.net/papers/political_diversity.pdf</ref> A Carnegie survey in1984 found that professors with liberal political views represented a slightly larger percentage of faculty than their conservative counterparts, constituting 39% of faculty as compared to 34% for conservatives. A 1999 survey conducted by the North American Academic Study Survey(NAASS) in the US found that professors with liberal socio-political views outnumbered their conservative counterparts by a ratio of 5 to 1, with the former constituting 72% of the faculty body and the later representing 15%. This shift to progressivism in institutions if higher education was not representative of the socio-political opinions of the general public. An opinion poll concluded that conservatives within the general public outnumbered liberals by a ratio of 2 to 1 in 1999, with the former constituting 37% of respondents and the latter a mere 17%. |
Prior to the late 1960's, speculation of the existence of liberal bias in higher education was based entirely on anecdotal reports and observations. Starting in 1969, a series of surveys and questionnaires were conducted throughout Canada and the US, which supported the previously untested speculations of the prevalence of progressive-styles of teaching amongst the majority of professors.<ref>http://yoelinbar.net/papers/political_diversity.pdf</ref> A Carnegie survey in1984 found that professors with liberal political views represented a slightly larger percentage of faculty than their conservative counterparts, constituting 39% of faculty as compared to 34% for conservatives. A 1999 survey conducted by the North American Academic Study Survey(NAASS) in the US found that professors with liberal socio-political views outnumbered their conservative counterparts by a ratio of 5 to 1, with the former constituting 72% of the faculty body and the later representing 15%. This shift to progressivism in institutions if higher education was not representative of the socio-political opinions of the general public. An opinion poll concluded that conservatives within the general public outnumbered liberals by a ratio of 2 to 1 in 1999, with the former constituting 37% of respondents and the latter a mere 17%.<ref name="Forum" /><ref>bar, Yoel, and Joris Lammers. "Political Diversity in Social and Personality Psychology." SSRN Electronic Journal SSRN Journal (2012): 3-5. Web. 1 May 2016. <http://yoelinbar.net/papers/political_diversity.pdf.</ref> Surveys conducted by the [[Xavier University]] in Ohio have provided a different explanation of the prevalence of liberal academics in colleges. The survey outlined the so-called 'Self-Selection Hypothesis', which proposed that conservatives were less likely to pursue careers in academia due to a combination of personal preference and belief that they would face more challenges in achieving academic success due in a progressive-dominated field. The study found that conservatives aspired to get into higher-paying jobs, whilst liberals were more likely to be affiliated with community service occupations and were less influenced by monetary gratification.<ref>Phillips, James Cleith. "Appendix To: 'Why Are There so Few Conservatives and Libertarians in Legal Academia? An Empirical Exploration of Three Hypotheses'" SSRN Electronic Journal SSRN Journal: 84-96. Web. 1 May 2016. <http://www.xavier.edu/xjop/documents/Hudson.pdf>.</ref> |
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==Implications== |
==Implications== |
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Revision as of 22:28, 19 January 2017
 | The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (October 2016) |
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Liberal bias in academia refers to the perception that academia has had an increasingly pronounced liberal bias. This has been a subject of controversy amongst academics and the general public alike. Whilst the debate whether liberal professors have secured an advantageous position regarding their professional development has intensified, the evidence put forward by both sides of the argument had remained largely empirical.[clarification needed] Recent research has provided evidence in support of the argument that institutions of higher education do cultivate faculty bodies with predominantly liberal socio-political views.[1]
Research
Prior to the late 1960's, speculation of the existence of liberal bias in higher education was based entirely on anecdotal reports and observations. Starting in 1969, a series of surveys and questionnaires were conducted throughout Canada and the US, which supported the previously untested speculations of the prevalence of progressive-styles of teaching amongst the majority of professors.[2] A Carnegie survey in1984 found that professors with liberal political views represented a slightly larger percentage of faculty than their conservative counterparts, constituting 39% of faculty as compared to 34% for conservatives. A 1999 survey conducted by the North American Academic Study Survey(NAASS) in the US found that professors with liberal socio-political views outnumbered their conservative counterparts by a ratio of 5 to 1, with the former constituting 72% of the faculty body and the later representing 15%. This shift to progressivism in institutions if higher education was not representative of the socio-political opinions of the general public. An opinion poll concluded that conservatives within the general public outnumbered liberals by a ratio of 2 to 1 in 1999, with the former constituting 37% of respondents and the latter a mere 17%.[1][3] Surveys conducted by the Xavier University in Ohio have provided a different explanation of the prevalence of liberal academics in colleges. The survey outlined the so-called 'Self-Selection Hypothesis', which proposed that conservatives were less likely to pursue careers in academia due to a combination of personal preference and belief that they would face more challenges in achieving academic success due in a progressive-dominated field. The study found that conservatives aspired to get into higher-paying jobs, whilst liberals were more likely to be affiliated with community service occupations and were less influenced by monetary gratification.[4]
Implications
The prevalence of progressive professors in institutions of higher education, some argue, has created an environment that prioritizes political correctness above truthfulness. A report by the California Association of Scholars, put together in 2012 for the UCLA, argues that the lack of balance between liberal and conservative viewpoints has contributed to a culture that espouses socio-cultural and political apologists, whilst marginalizing those with center-right viewpoints.[5]
See also
- Academic bias
- Liberal bias
- Political correctness in education
- Political views of professors in the United States
References
- ^ a b Rothman, Stanley; Lichter, S. Robert; Nevitte, Neil (2005), "Politics and Professional Advancement Among College Faculty" (PDF), The Forum, 3 (1), doi:10.2202/1540-8884.1067
- ^ http://yoelinbar.net/papers/political_diversity.pdf
- ^ bar, Yoel, and Joris Lammers. "Political Diversity in Social and Personality Psychology." SSRN Electronic Journal SSRN Journal (2012): 3-5. Web. 1 May 2016. <http://yoelinbar.net/papers/political_diversity.pdf.
- ^ Phillips, James Cleith. "Appendix To: 'Why Are There so Few Conservatives and Libertarians in Legal Academia? An Empirical Exploration of Three Hypotheses'" SSRN Electronic Journal SSRN Journal: 84-96. Web. 1 May 2016. <http://www.xavier.edu/xjop/documents/Hudson.pdf>.
- ^ Ellis, John M., Charles L. Geshekter, Peter W. Wood, and Stephen H. Balch. The Corrupting Effect of Political Activism in the University of California. Rep. Los Angeles: California Association of Scholars, 2012. Print.{https://www.nas.org/images/documents/A_Crisis_of_Competence.pdf}