social conservative
Upholds traditional norms
A social conservative holds traditional views on cultural and moral issues—typically opposing abortion, supporting traditional marriage, and emphasizing religious values in public life.
The term distinguishes this stance from fiscal or economic conservatism, though they often overlap: Social conservatives in the party pushed for stricter obscenity laws.
Compare traditional values.
GOP party member
- right-wingPolitically conservative faction
- Moral MajorityEvangelical political advocacy group
- religious rightFaith-based political movement
- culture warConflict over societal values
anti-abortion · school prayer · homeschooling · censorship · traditionalist · paleoconservative · evangelical · states' rights
Beliefs prioritizing domestic bonds
- traditional marriageCustomary male-female union
- pro-lifeAgainst elective pregnancy termination
- religious libertyProtected right to worship
- parental rightsLegal power over children
moral authority · decency · chastity · abstinence · fidelity · monogamy · gender roles · modesty
Existing condition of affairs
- establishmentFounded organization or venue
- conformityAdherence to norms
- mainstreamDominant cultural current
- orthodoxyAdherence to accepted beliefs
convention · permanence · continuity · entrenchment · unchanging · preservation · institutional · order
Traditional practices or import taxes
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- cultural identityBelonging through shared traditions
- preservationMaintaining something's condition
folklore · rituals · ceremonies · religious observance · orthodoxy · doctrine · canon · lineage
Opposing religion-free government
- heteronormativityAssumed universal straightness
- anti-abortionOpposing pregnancy termination
- creationismDivine origin doctrine
- intelligent designPurposeful cause over randomness
content regulation · anti-pornography · moral decline · slippery slope
Republican
GOP party member
- right-wingPolitically conservative faction
- Moral MajorityEvangelical political advocacy group
- religious rightFaith-based political movement
culture war · anti-abortion · school prayer · homeschooling · censorship · traditionalist · paleoconservative · evangelical · states' rights · anti-secularism
family values
Beliefs prioritizing domestic bonds
- traditional marriageCustomary male-female union
- pro-lifeAgainst elective pregnancy termination
- religious libertyProtected right to worship
parental rights · moral authority · decency · chastity · abstinence · fidelity · monogamy · gender roles · modesty · piety
status quo
Existing condition of affairs
- establishmentFounded organization or venue
- conformityAdherence to norms
- mainstreamDominant cultural current
orthodoxy · convention · permanence · continuity · entrenchment · unchanging · preservation · institutional · order · hierarchy
customs
Traditional practices or import taxes
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
- ancestryFamily line of descent
- cultural identityBelonging through shared traditions
preservation · folklore · rituals · ceremonies · religious observance · orthodoxy · doctrine · canon · lineage · roots
anti-secularism
Opposing religion-free government
- heteronormativityAssumed universal straightness
- anti-abortionOpposing pregnancy termination
- creationismDivine origin doctrine
intelligent design · content regulation · anti-pornography · moral decline · slippery slope
- political ideologiesanarchism, liberalism, liberal, libertarian, fascism
social conservativesocial liberal
Favors personal freedom, state support
progressive · libertine · liberal · secular humanist · feminist
social conservativeprogressive
Favoring reform and innovation
reformist · revolutionary · modernizer · iconoclast · change agent
social conservativecounterculturalist
Rejecter of mainstream values
bohemian · modernist · cosmopolitan · avant-gardist · hippie
social, conservative, society, societal, socialism, socialist, socialize, socialization, sociable