Politics at universities self-perpetuate, study suggests
Kaitlyn Willcoxon
Issue date: 2/4/10 Section: News
In some ways, the fact that Smith students and faculty more than lean to the left is a stock joke both within and beyond the Smith bubble.
Of course, this political leaning is not unique to Smith and is anecdotally and empirically known to be true of most college campuses throughout the country.
The New York Times recently published the article, "Professor is a label that leans to the left" by Patricia Cohen, which addressed a sociological study done by several professors that seeks to explain why most college professors tend to be left of center.
The sociologists identified the professorial profession as politically-typed: professors have the reputation for leftism and so leftist students, when choosing a career, will be more inclined to become professors than conservative students. As Cohen blithely remarked, "Conjure up the classic image of a humanities or social sciences professor… tweed jacket, pipe, nerdy, longwinded, secular - and liberal."
The study identified that the same characteristics that move someone to a political belief tend to dictate profession choice. The study identifies several characteristics that both liberals and professors tend to share: secularism, a purported tolerance for radical ideas and advanced degrees.
Finally, professors, unique to their profession, are able to choose who can work with them through the tenure system. Many criticize that this system merely signifies that professors are able to reward those most like themselves through employment and punish those different from themselves; this results in increasing the amount of left-leaning professors. A preference for those similar, as Cohen points out, is characteristic of all people, regardless of their profession or political affiliation.
Associate professor of sociology and environmental science and policy Leslie King believes that the article's idea of "typecasting" is intriguing. "It makes sense to me that people would be attracted to occupations that appear to reflect their values," said King.
Of course, this political leaning is not unique to Smith and is anecdotally and empirically known to be true of most college campuses throughout the country.
The New York Times recently published the article, "Professor is a label that leans to the left" by Patricia Cohen, which addressed a sociological study done by several professors that seeks to explain why most college professors tend to be left of center.
The sociologists identified the professorial profession as politically-typed: professors have the reputation for leftism and so leftist students, when choosing a career, will be more inclined to become professors than conservative students. As Cohen blithely remarked, "Conjure up the classic image of a humanities or social sciences professor… tweed jacket, pipe, nerdy, longwinded, secular - and liberal."
The study identified that the same characteristics that move someone to a political belief tend to dictate profession choice. The study identifies several characteristics that both liberals and professors tend to share: secularism, a purported tolerance for radical ideas and advanced degrees.
Finally, professors, unique to their profession, are able to choose who can work with them through the tenure system. Many criticize that this system merely signifies that professors are able to reward those most like themselves through employment and punish those different from themselves; this results in increasing the amount of left-leaning professors. A preference for those similar, as Cohen points out, is characteristic of all people, regardless of their profession or political affiliation.
Associate professor of sociology and environmental science and policy Leslie King believes that the article's idea of "typecasting" is intriguing. "It makes sense to me that people would be attracted to occupations that appear to reflect their values," said King.
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