Study: Liberal, conservative differences

EVANSTON, Ill., Sept. 23 (UPI) -- A study by Illinois' Northwestern University suggests politically conservative Christians fear chaos while their liberal counterparts fear emptiness.

Dan McAdams, a professor of human development and psychology, said researchers questioned 128 socially active churchgoers for their study, "What if there Were No God? Politically Conservative and Liberal Christians Imagine their Lives without Faith." He said the sample was set up to allow each political ideology equal representation.

"Political conservatives envision a world without God in which baser human impulses go unchecked, social institutions (marriage, government, family) fall apart and chaos ensues," McAdams said.

He said liberals were found to be more likely to see a world without God as an empty place devoid of meaning.

"Liberals see their faith as something that fills them up and, without it, they conjure up metaphors of emptiness, depletion and scarcity," McAdams said. "While conservatives worry about societal collapse, liberals worry about a world without deep feelings and intense experiences."