An ideology is a set of or values attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely about belief in certain knowledge, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones".Maurice Cranston. 1999 2014. " Ideology " (revised). Encyclopædia Britannica. Formerly applied primarily to Economy, political, or Religion theories and policies, in a tradition going back to Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, more recent use treats the term as mainly condemnatory.
The term was coined by Antoine Destutt de Tracy, a French Enlightenment aristocrat and philosopher, who conceived it in 1796 as the "science of ideas" to develop a rational system of ideas to oppose the irrational impulses of the mob. In political science, the term is used in a descriptive sense to refer to political belief systems.
An ideologue is someone who strongly believes in an ideology. The term carries negative connotations, often referring to someone who is blindly partisan, zealous, or fanatical in their beliefs.
Hoping to form a secure foundation for the Human science and political sciences, Tracy devised the term for a "science of ideas", basing such upon two things: (1) the sensations that people experience as they interact with the material world; and (2) the ideas that form in their minds due to those sensations. Tracy conceived of ideology as a liberal philosophy that would defend individual liberty, property, free markets, and constitutional limits on state political power. He argues that, among these aspects, ideology is the most generic term because the 'science of ideas' also contains the study of their expression and deduction. The coup d'état that overthrew Maximilien Robespierre in July 1794 allowed Tracy to pursue his work. Tracy reacted to the terroristic phase of the revolution (during the Napoleonic regime of 1799 to 1815 as part of the Napoleonic Wars) by trying to work out a rational system of ideas to oppose the irrational mob-impulses that had nearly destroyed him.
A subsequent early source for the near-original meaning of ideology is Hippolyte Taine's work on the Ancien Régime, Origins of Contemporary France () volume I (1875). He describes ideology as rather like teaching philosophy via the Socratic method, though without extending the vocabulary beyond what the general reader already possessed, and without the examples from observation that practical science would require. Taine identifies it not just with Tracy but also with his milieu, and includes Condillac as one of its precursors.
Napoleon Bonaparte (1769–1821) came to view ideology as a term of abuse, which he often hurled against his liberal foes in Tracy's Institut national. According to Karl Mannheim's historical reconstruction of the shifts in the meaning of ideology, the modern meaning of the word was born when Napoleon used it to describe his opponents as "the ideologues". Tracy's major book, The Elements of Ideology (, published 1804–1815), was soon translated into major European languages.
In the century following Tracy's formulations, the term ideology moved back and forth between positive and negative connotations. When post-Napoleonic governments adopted a reactionary stance, the concept influenced the Italian, Spanish and Russian thinkers who had begun to describe themselves as liberals and who attempted to reignite revolutionary activity in the early 1820s, including the Carbonari societies in France and Italy and the Decembrists in Russia. Karl Marx (1818–1883) adopted Napoleon's negative sense of the term, using it in his writings, in which he once described Tracy as a (a "fish-blooded bourgeois doctrinaire").de Tracy, Antoine Destutt. 1801 1817. Les Éléments d'idéologie, (3rd ed.). p. 4, as cited in Karl Mannheim. 1929. "The problem of 'false consciousness.'" In Ideologie und Utopie. 2nd footnote. The term has since dropped some of its pejorative sting (euphemism treadmill), and has become a neutral term in the analysis of differing political opinions and views of .Terry Eagleton (1991) Ideology: An Introduction, Verso, p. 2 While Marx situated the term within class struggle and domination,Tucker, Robert C (1978). The Marx-Engels Reader, W. W. Norton & Company, p. 3.Marx, MER, p. 154 others believed it was a necessary part of institutional functioning and social cohesion.Susan Silbey, "Ideology". . Cambridge Dictionary of Sociology.
In parallel with post-Soviet Russian ideas about the mono-ideology of (for example) monotheism, Walter Brueggemann (1933–2025) has examined "ideological extension" in historical religious/political contexts.
Studies of the concept of ideology itself (rather than specific ideologies) have been carried out under the name of systematic ideology in the works of George Walford and Harold Walsby, who attempt to explore the relationships between ideology and .This is an example. David W. Minar describes six different ways the word ideology has been used:Minar, David W. 1961. "Ideology and Political Behavior." Midwest Journal of Political Science 5(4):317–31. . .
For Willard A. Mullins, an ideology should be contrasted with the related (but different) issues of utopia and historical myth. An ideology is composed of four basic characteristics:Mullins, Willard A. 1972. "On the Concept of Ideology in Political Science." American Political Science Review 66(2):498–510. .
Terry Eagleton outlines (more or less in no particular order) some definitions of ideology:Terry Eagleton. 1991. Ideology: An Introduction . Verso Books. .
German philosopher Christian Duncker called for a "critical reflection of the ideology concept"." Christian Duncker" (in German). Ideologie Forschung. 2006. In his work, he strove to bring the concept of ideology into the foreground, as well as the closely connected concerns of epistemology and history, defining ideology in terms of a system of presentations that explicitly or implicitly lay claim to absolute truth.
In the Marxist base and superstructure model of society, base denotes the relations of production and modes of production, and superstructure denotes the dominant ideology (i.e. religious, legal, political systems). The economic base of production determines the political superstructure of a society. Ruling Class interest determine the superstructure and the nature of the justifying ideology—actions feasible because the ruling class control the means of production. For example, in a feudal mode of production, religious ideology is the most prominent aspect of the superstructure, while in capitalist formations, ideologies such as liberalism and social democracy dominate. Hence the great importance of ideology justifies a society and politically confuses the alienated groups of society via false consciousness. Some explanations have been presented. Antonio Gramsci uses cultural hegemony to explain why the working-class have a false ideological conception of what their best interests are. Marx argued: "The class which has the means of material production at its disposal has control at the same time over the means of mental production."
The Marxist formulation of "ideology as an instrument of social reproduction" is conceptually important to the sociology of knowledge,In this discipline, there are lexical disputes over the meaning of the word "ideology" ("false consciousness" as advocated by Marx, or rather "false position" of a statement in itself is correct but irrelevant in the context in which it is produced, as in Max Weber's opinion): viz. Karl Mannheim, Daniel Bell, and Jürgen Habermas et al. Moreover, Mannheim has developed and progressed from the "total" but "special" Marxist conception of ideology to a "general" and "total" ideological conception acknowledging that all ideology (including Marxism) resulted from social life, an idea developed by the sociologist Pierre Bourdieu. Slavoj Žižek and the earlier Frankfurt School added to the "general theory" of ideology a psychoanalytic insight that ideologies do not include only conscious but also unconscious mind ideas.
Political ideologies have two dimensions:
There are many proposed methods for the classification of political ideologies. Ideologies can identify themselves by their position on the political spectrum (e.g. left, center, or right). They may also be distinguished by single issues around which they may be built (e.g. civil libertarianism, Pro-Europeanism or Euroscepticism, legalization of marijuana). They may also be distinguished by political strategies (e.g. populism, personalism). The classification of political ideology is difficult, however, due to cultural relativity in definitions. For example, "what Americans now call conservatism much of the world calls liberalism or neoliberalism"; a conservatism in Finland would be labeled socialism in the United States.
Philosopher Michael Oakeshott defines single-issue ideologies as "the formalized abridgment of the supposed sub-stratum of the rational truth contained in the tradition". Moreover, Charles Blattberg offers an account that distinguishes political ideologies from political philosophies.
Slavoj Žižek argues how the very notion of post-ideology can enable the deepest, blindest form of ideology. A sort of false consciousness or false cynicism, engaged in for the purpose of lending one's point of view the respect of being objective, pretending neutral cynicism, without truly being so. Rather than help avoiding ideology, this lapse only deepens the commitment to an existing one. Zizek calls this "a Postmodernism trap". Peter Sloterdijk advanced the same idea already in 1988.
Studies have shown that political ideology is somewhat genetically Heritability.Bouchard, Thomas J., and Matt McGue. 2003. " Genetic and environmental influences on human psychological differences (ePDF) ." Journal of Neurobiology 54(1):44–45. . Cloninger, et al. (1993).Eaves, L. J., and Hans Eysenck. 1974. " Genetics and the development of social attitudes ." Nature 249:288–89. .Alford, John, Carolyn Funk, and John Hibbing. 2005. " Are Political Orientations Genetically Transmitted? ." American Political Science Review 99(2):153–167.Pete Hatemi, Sarah Medland, Katherine I. Morley, Andrew C. Heath, and Nicholas G. Martin. 2007. " The genetics of voting: An Australian twin study ." Behavior Genetics 37(3):435–448. .Pete Hatemi, J. Hibbing, J. Alford, N. Martin, and L. Eaves. 2009. " Is there a 'party' in your genes? " Political Research Quarterly 62 (3):584–600. . .Settle, Jaime E., Christopher T. Dawes, and James H. Fowler. 2009. " The heritability of partisan attachment ." Political Research Quarterly 62(3):601–13. .
In The Anatomy of Revolution, Crane Brinton said that new ideology spreads when there is discontent with an old regime.Crane Brinton. 1938. "Chapter 2." The Anatomy of Revolution. The may be repeated during revolutions itself; extremists such as Vladimir Lenin and Robespierre may thus overcome more moderate revolutionaries.Crane Brinton. 1938. "Chapter 6." The Anatomy of Revolution. This stage is soon followed by Thermidor, a reining back of revolutionary enthusiasm under Pragmatism like Napoleon and Joseph Stalin, who bring "normalcy and equilibrium".Crane Brinton. 1938. "Chapter 8." The Anatomy of Revolution. Brinton's sequence ("men of ideas>Fanaticism>practical men of action") is reiterated by J. William Fulbright,Fulbright, J. William. 1967. The Arrogance of Power. ch. 3–7. while a similar form occurs in Eric Hoffer's The True Believer.Eric Hoffer. 1951. The True Believer. ch. 15–17.
Deep ecology and the modern ecology movement (and, to a lesser degree, Green parties) appear to have adopted ecological sciences as a positive ideology. Some notable economically based ideologies include neoliberalism, monetarism, mercantilism, mixed economy, social Darwinism, communism, laissez-faire economics, and free trade. There are also current theories of safe trade and fair trade that can be seen as ideologies.
Jost, Ledgerwood, and Hardin (2008) propose that ideologies may function as prepackaged units of interpretation that spread because of basic human motives to understand the world, avoid existential threat, and maintain valued interpersonal relationships.John Jost, Alison Ledgerwood, and Curtis D. Hardin. 2008. "Shared reality, system justification, and the relational basis of ideological beliefs." pp. 171–186 in Social and Personality Psychology Compass 2. The authors conclude that such motives may lead disproportionately to the adoption of system-justifying . Psychologists generally agree that personality traits, individual difference variables, needs, and ideological beliefs seem to have something in common.
Just-world theory posits that people want to believe in a fair world for a sense of control and security and generate ideologies in order to maintain this belief, for example by justifiying inequality or unfortunate events. A critique of just world theory as a sole explanation of ideology is that it does not explain the differences between ideologies.
Terror management theory posits that ideology is used as a defence mechanism against threats to their worldview which in turn protect and individuals sense of self-esteem and reduce their awareness of mortality. Evidence shows that priming individuals with an awareness of mortality does not cause individuals to respond in ways underpinned by any particular ideology, but rather the ideology that they are currently aware of.
System justification theory posits that people tend to defend existing society, even at times against their interest, which in turn causes people to create ideological explanations to justify the status quo. Jost, Fitzimmons and Kay argue that the motivation to protect a preexisting system is due to a desire for cognitive consistency (being able to think in similar ways over time), reducing uncertainty and reducing effort, illusion of control and fear of equality. According to system justification theory, ideologies reflect (Unconscious mind) motivational processes, as opposed to the view that political convictions always reflect independent and unbiased thinking.
Ideology identifies a unitary object that incorporates complex sets of meanings with the social agents and processes that produced them. No other term captures this object as well as 'ideology'. Michel Foucault's 'episteme' is too narrow and abstract, not social enough. His 'discourse', popular because it covers some of ideology's terrain with less baggage, is too confined to verbal systems. 'Worldview' is too Metaphysics, 'propaganda' too loaded. Despite or because of its contradictions, 'ideology' still plays a key role in semiotics oriented to social, political life.Authors such as Michael Freeden have also recently incorporated a semantics analysis to the study of ideologies.
Sociological examples of ideologies include racism, sexism, heterosexism, ableism, and ethnocentrism.
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