What Is Conservatism?

Conservatism is a political doctrine that emphasizes the value of traditional institutions and practices. Conservatives favor gradual change under conditions of continuity and stability, and hold that government should serve existing ways… The Atlas covers 18 conservative ideologies, listed below with their estimated positions.

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Conservatism explained

Core ideas

Respect for traditional institutions and practices.
A preference for gradual evolution over abrupt change.
Continuity and stability as conditions for good government.

Origins

Britannica identifies Edmund Burke's thought and a continental strand associated with Joseph de Maistre as the intellectual roots of conservatism.

Associated thinkers

Edmund Burke, Joseph de Maistre, Benjamin Disraeli, Otto von Bismarck, Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan

Based on Britannica: Conservatism (checked October 20, 2026).

Types of conservatism on the Atlas

Ideology	Economic	Social	Authority
Traditional Conservatism	74	81	30
One-Nation Conservatism	59	69	30
Paternalistic Conservatism	52	77	36
Fiscal Conservatism	89	59	28
Social Conservatism	74	85	37
National Conservatism	66	82	36
Paleoconservatism	63	90	32
Neoconservatism	74	73	36
Libertarian Conservatism	93	75	20
Christian Democracy	57	74	25
Distributism	40	83	29
Conservative Populism	60	71	37
Right-Wing Populism	66	67	46
Economic Nationalism	50	64	42
Agrarian Conservatism	63	86	31
Monarchism	72	93	71
Absolute Monarchism	67	99	88
Authoritarian Conservatism	67	94	79

Economic: 0 collective/planned – 100 market. Social: 0 progressive – 100 traditional. Authority: 0 libertarian – 100 authoritarian. How these are calculated.

Average position of the family

Map dimension	Score (0–100)	Reading
Economic Collective / planned ↔ Market	66	toward market
Social Progressive ↔ Traditional	79	toward traditional
Authority Libertarian ↔ Authoritarian	41	near the center
National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist	77	toward nationalist
Foreign policy Non-intervention ↔ Intervention	35	toward non-intervention

Simple average of the 18 ideologies above; the family is a grouping used by the Atlas, not a single doctrine.