Conservatism and liberalism: a psychoanalytic examination of political belief.

A review of the historical development of conservative and liberal through reveals contradictory basic assumptions: the former views man as essentially evil by nature, and places its priorities upon self-restraint; the latter views man as essentially good, and with umlimited capabilities, and celebrates his efforts at creating a perfect society for himself. Three clinical vignettes are recounted in which the patient's intrapyschic organization found support from a hormonious political philosophy. It is suggested that conservatism and liberalism offer the individual an ideological resolution to the narcissistic injuries he experiences as a consequence of life's inevitable and developmentally determined disappointments.