Political And Social Ideology Test

[Joseph C.]

I found this quite interesting although the questions certainly seem to be American-centric.

For instance, I know I lean towards social liberalism which should be place me as a moderate left wing -socio/politically-speaking but economically I should be in the middle between public and private - yet I end up making Ghandi seem authoritarian...

I'd expect the majority of Europeans, Canadians and Antipodeans to be in the bottom left quadrant. Anyway try it and see.

http://www.politicalcompass.org/test

Here is some interesting reactions to it.

http://www.munsterfans.com/threads/3193 ... -you-stand

[StudEbiker]

Some of the questions were very oddly worded and forced me to make less than precise answers, but of all the famous people they showed representations of, I was closest to Freidman, which I will take as a great honor. In fact no other person besides me and Freidman showed up in that quadrant of the examples shown.

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[Dauntless]

The businessperson and the manufacturer are more important than the writer and the artist.

Well, since I am the writer and the artist, I guess I'm free to agree. Meanwhile, some of these questions I just want to ask "What do you mean by that?"

Charity is better than social security as a means of helping the genuinely disadvantaged.

So they aligned me with Francois Holland, President of France, just a hopscotch away from the Dalai Lama. Dang, did you see the current Dalai Lama on CNN a few weeks ago? This is one of the kewlest guys in the world. Gotta study for this test so I can make up that few squares and pull even with him.

Or maybe this chart leaves something to be desired. They called Pope Benedict XVI a bit of a left winger. (In case you didn't know, he was the inspiration for the leader of the bad guys in 'The DaVinci Code.') Did you read what they had to say about British political Parties?

[Jeremy Harris]

Interesting. I wonder how many of us here are going to end up in the lower left quadrant? Quite a few I guess:

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[dogman]

I thought I'd land lower to the left. At least I didn't graph as a member of the Aryan brotherhood.

I landed right on a spot exactly between Nelson Mandella and the Dali Lama. I can live with that.

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[Drunkskunk]

I'm supprised by the rusults from this thing. Most of my friends accuse me of being a right winger. but then, I have some very left wing friends.

I fall right between Nelson Mandela and the Dalai Lama

[Icewrench]

Landed in the green zone.

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[Jeremy Harris]

I'm just waiting to see if we can guess who the first member will be that ends up in the top right corner........................

[Philistine]

I got too angry with the test to complete it. I can't complete psychometric testing that has such dumb questions.

Any test that proposes to a human being with a functioning brain, the question whether you would choose lowering inflation as more important than lowering unemployment, has been written by people whose brains have been somehow infected with rot.

[John in CR]

Trying to summarize someone's views on a broad variety of complex issues down to single point on a grid is ridiculous. I'm certainly no centrist, yet that thing plopped me almost dead center. This resulted from my very strong views that can be at opposite ends of the spectrum about specific topics within the same category, so the majority of my data points were out at the edges averaging to a point in the middle.

I say boil it down to say 10 questions and show the results compared to the average.

John

[The fingers]

I was surprised the red dot missed the exact spot where I thought it wuold be. I guess I'm not predictibly perfectly politically centric, but I could have told them that. An amusing waste of time.

[Kingfish]

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Hmmm, I thought I'd be more of a centrist, but some of those questions are fairly tilted and there is no middle choice, so naturally I am going to lean humanist over faceless corporate/government. Kinda silly really. I mean - I'm shoulder to shoulder with the Dalai Lama ~ how cool is that?

Radicalized... sort of, KF

[Dauntless]

I got too angry with the test . . . written by people whose brains have been somehow infected with rot.

No no, they just did a poor job of hiding that they're pushing their agenda/ideaology. As noted with the thoughts on 'Should have been a right winger' and 'Bet we're all lefties,' this is from an extremist lot trying to prove to everyone that we all feel just like they do. Doesn't make someone right or left.

So are the Dalai Lama and the President of France really my neighbors, as the test suggests? Or are they just trying to start a fight AGAIN?

[MikeFairbanks]

I got my chart, but I guess I missed the part about who they compared me to. Odd. I guess I wasn't paying attention. They never asked about ADHD.

[Dauntless]

Well, there you go. As you can see, you didn't wind up next to anyone. Must be why you didn't notice.

So I went through the test again and answered every single one of them "Strongly Agree." How kewl is THAT? Here's what people will say about you if you become more agreeable:



"Strongly Disagree" created the mirror image:



So if you marked all of them somewhat agree or disagree, would it move the horizontal but center the vertical? I only ask that to foster discussion on this vital issue.

[MikeFairbanks]

[Electroglide]

I ended up pretty much center lower left

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Got a feeling most people would end up there or at least in the lower quadrants except if you are a total nut case that wants to be subservient to everything.

[EDIT] .. I just ran the test again answering the questions based on what the american media reports back on Republican policy and mandates, and had and interesting result

Here is my result answering questions the way the Republican messages that I see constantly in the American media would have me believe

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I have seen a number of polls that suggest that the USA is really more progressive in their views than their two parties that are funded by corporate america and the rich. Wonder what happens when the citizens realize that their government doesn't represent them especially with little or no gun controls in place in many states

[alan]

I got too angry with the test to complete it. I can't complete psychometric testing that has such dumb questions.

Any test that proposes to a human being with a functioning brain, the question whether you would choose lowering inflation as more important than lowering unemployment, has been written by people whose brains have been somehow infected with rot.

Sorry to disagree, but I think you just failed to see the significance of the question. Let me assume you think unemployment is worse (just a guess)...

[devil's advocate] Inflation is steeling value from your savings. For a retiree, it is worse than unemployment since there are few options for recovery for the rest of their lives. Unemployment is temporary for most of those looking for work. Every step of inflation is permanent and affects all savings of everyone.
[/devil's advocate]

There seems to be a normal level of each when considering the US history. Unemployment is generally around 5% when we hear full employment, and inflation tends to be about 3.5% when we say it's a healthy economy. So, which is worse for the country as a whole, 6% unemployment or 4.5% inflation?

-- Alan

PS I was pretty much centered in the green, as are many here.

[dogman]

Both at once is worse. In southern New Mexico normal is 8% unemployment. So it was extra fun in the 60's early 70's when inflation got bad.

Fun to see where the shout at you news viewpoint graphs. Aryan brotherhood. Love the fox news message, fear everything!

[nicobie]

Most tests are a joke.

I figured out before I was in 3rd grade that it's not what you know... but how to take the test. You will always score above average if you can think like the perps that wrote the damn thing.

My first grade report card in a catholic school came from a priest who handed it out to me. I didn't like what it said and told him so. The nuns frocked with me every chance they got for the next 7 years because of that and got especially irritated that my scores were in the top % nationwide. I was always in trouble according to them for underachieving. My parents totally believed them. I was issued a report card every day about my work habits and behavior that had to be signed and returned. My start in shady activities was born.

I gave it back to them bitches every chance I got. When they got sent back to France because of lack of funds, I laughed my ass off.

One of the old retired nuns was here for a reunion recently and I really enjoyed insulting her. I brought a metal edged ruler to the Reunion and asked if I could slice her fingers as she did mine.

It was interesting how none of the other folks attending defended her.

Does this mean that I will now be going to Hell?

[Philistine]

Sorry to disagree, but I think you just failed to see the significance of the question. Let me assume you think unemployment is worse (just a guess)...

I am not saying they aren't causally linked at all, I am saying it is a ridiculous question to ask. It would be like asking in a survey on your understanding of health: "Limiting alcohol intake is more important to the overrall health of a person than is the potential benefits that can arise from the lowering of blood pressure caused by moderate alcohol intake". It is a non-sensical question. I wouldn't mind if the test gave an answer option of "no view", but you have to either agree or disagree that controlling inflation is more important than controlling unemployment.

Obviously I realise what they are trying to determine about you, they think you are either obsessed with controlling inflation, or you think that you can print money and employ people in government make work programs/expenditure without causing inflation (or not caring about the inflation that will follow). I get the point of the question, I just think it betrays the totally un-nuanced approach to political philosophy that underpins the test.

Does this mean that I will now be going to Hell?

No - you will be going to hell for all that filthy other stuff you did, but don't worry, plenty of the nuns and priests will be there to keep it real with.

[Chalo]

The questions didn't address a sufficient range to cover the basics, in my opinion. Here's mine:



Thing is, if they'd asked about polluting, operating dangerous machinery in public, energy use, or any of a bunch of other things, I wouldn't look nearly so libertarian at all.

I believe in exercising a death penalty, but only for public officials and only for gross violations of the public interest. That's not exactly pro-death-penalty. So how am I to answer a question like that?

It is interesting though that in this crude analysis, as in point-by-point surveys on political issues, most people in the USA think they are much more to the right than their actual political opinions reflect. Folks would rather tell themselves they are conservatives instead of admitting they are deeply ingrained racists with otherwise liberal values, for instance.

I remember a public survey on specific political issues during one of the past couple of presidential elections, where the only candidate whose answers corresponded with more than a tiny fraction of all the respondents was Dennis Kucinich. And his corresponded with a large majority.

I guess one of the take away lessons is that in politics just as in vehicles, places of residence, employment or practically anything else, people are much more likely to reflect what they've been sold than what they actually want.

Chalo

[Spriggs05]

This is my one, guess im kind of alone in this thread then...

[Cargo_Tom]

I seem to have become more leftist in the couple of years since I took the survey a few years ago. For a US centric board there does seem to be an awful lot of "greenies" compared to my other digital watering holes.

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[Dauntless]

For a US centric board there does seem to be an awful lot of "greenies" compared to my other digital watering holes.

Make that UK centric.