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Harvard: Liberals Struggle More with Mental Health

Harvard: Liberals Struggle More with Mental Health

Last updated on: January 4, 2025 at 12:54 pm by John Gravino

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Harvard: Liberals Struggle More with Mental Health 2025-01-04T12:54:18-05:00 John Gravino

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SOUL SCIENCE, Episode #25

Are Democrats “Jack Torrance-y” crazy?

On my previous show, (episode #24) I wondered out loud about the state of Democrat mental health given the unhinged reactions after the presidential election. While many readers reacted positively to the article, some took umbrage. One reader implied that I had no evidence for my claims:

“Would you, please, provide citations for your claims?”

Harvard: Liberals more mentally ill than conservatives

Although I disagree that I do not back up my claims with evidence, nevertheless, I decided to provide more data. In a brand new interview, Harvard sociologist Arthur Brooks stated that liberals are unhappier than conservatives—and less healthy psychologically.

“With that in mind, it will come as no surprise to anyone that Harvard professor Arthur Brooks has found that, overall, liberal men and women tend to be overwhelmingly far more unhappy than their conservative counterparts and far more susceptible to mental illness” (Twitchy, see below).

What is the explanation?

Arthur Brooks is ambivalent about an explanation for this trend. But I am not. I have consistently pointed to the loss of religion in America and the West as the primary cause of our social ills. This is part of my response to a reader from episode #24:

“One of my constant talking points has been the research pointing to tangible health benefits from religious practice. So I’m connecting the dots, so to speak. If Democrats are walking away from religion in bigger numbers, they may perhaps lose out on those tangible mental health benefits. I am suggesting that the many stories circulating of Democrats going berserk might be explained by their falling away from religion.”

What is your explanation?

Of course, no one is required to accept my explanations for things. But if you don’t accept it, please tell us what your theory is? One reason I think that my theory makes so much sense is that, in fact, Democrats are walking away from Christianity in big numbers. And the other reason my theory makes sense, in my opinion, is that liberal Christians don’t mind that so many of their fellow Democrats have abandoned their faith.

In other words, they are blind to the severity of the situation. Ask yourself when lung cancer was a bigger problem—before or after we discovered that smoking caused cancer. Once we learned about the dangers of smoking, large numbers of people stopped smoking and lung cancer cases decreased.

Analogously, liberals do not yet appreciate the dangers of their spiritual laziness. And for this reason, liberals are suffering the consequences in increasing numbers as more of them abandon their religious practice. Read my book for more details. Or check out my SOUL SCIENCE podcast!

Check out our new and improved “About” page!

I mention on the show that I just added a lot of new material to our “About” page. I did this to respond to questions that keep coming up in the comments boxes. Check it out and tell if you like it or not.

Show notes:

Shining Screenshot: https://youtu.be/YnzYWsdHEpM?si=lemA5U7F3GMc5Mlf

“Atheism Poisons Everything”: https://stream.org/atheism-poisons-everything/

“About Soul Science”: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/soulscience/about/

Soul Science, ep. #24: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/soulscience/2024/11/soul24/

Arthur Brooks Interview: https://twitchy.com/grateful-calvin/2024/12/27/shocking-news-data-shows-the-vast-majority-of-unhappy-and-mentally-ill-people-are-on-the-left-n2405729

Arthur Brooks Interview on Twitter: https://x.com/OwenGregorian/status/1872978079129452718

Dr. Leonard Sax Interview: https://youtu.be/x3LNe1JE_ck?si=lO3eE4au76rc9Ebc

The High Price of Materialism by Dr. Tim Kasser: https://www.amazon.com/High-Price-Materialism-Tim-Kasser/dp/026261197X/

FEMA: https://nypost.com/2024/11/12/us-news/fema-worker-accused-of-telling-staff-to-skip-hurricane-ravaged-trump-homes-claims-it-was-common-practice-this-is-not-isolated/

Amish: https://x.com/matt_vanswol/status/1874090246247506269

American Mania: https://www.amazon.com/American-Mania-When-More-Enough/dp/039332849X/

*“*Grace Is Everywhere”: https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2023/12/19/strynkowski-reflections-priestly-life-246002

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About John Gravino

John Gravino is the author of The Immoral Landscape of the New Atheism, which was the topic of a health and spirituality seminar at Duke Medical School. He continues to explore the intersection of health and religion and the other big questions of life right here at Patheos. You can read more about the author here.

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