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Moral Values, Moralism, and the 2004 Presidential Election
Author(s) -
Lovett Benjamin J.,
Jordan Alexander H.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
analyses of social issues and public policy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.479
H-Index - 31
eISSN - 1530-2415
pISSN - 1529-7489
DOI - 10.1111/j.1530-2415.2005.00062.x
Subject(s) - morality , presidential election , politics , abortion , social psychology , personality , rhetoric , political science , psychology , sociology , law , philosophy , pregnancy , linguistics , biology , genetics
The “moral values vote” in the 2004 American presidential election should be interpreted more broadly than as a reflection of concerns about same‐sex marriage and abortion. Instead of specific hot‐button social policy issues, a general personality trait of moralism—the tendency to perceive a moral dimension in everyday decisions—may have contributed to the election outcome. Specifically, we hypothesize that some Bush supporters shared Bush's high level of moralism (as reflected in his rhetoric) and that this moralism motivated their votes. Consistent with our hypothesis, a preliminary empirical investigation suggests that Bush voters were, indeed, higher in moralism than were Kerry voters. Plans for further research and political strategy implications are discussed.