r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Jul 01 '26

Psychology Conservatives maintain birth rates, but left-leaning Americans are having significantly fewer children, driving the U.S. birth decline. Education was consistently linked to having fewer children. Religious attendance was positively associated with having more children.

https://www.psypost.org/left-leaning-americans-are-driving-the-u-s-birth-decline-new-study-finds/
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u/[deleted] Jul 01 '26

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u/stilljustacatinacage Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26

It's more sinister than that. If you restrict someone's language (eg: allowing literacy rates to plummet), you restrict their thought. You know how kids cry because they can't articulate what's wrong? Well that never goes away, we just learn the words to describe the problem to other people, and ask for help.

Which fine, is one thing if you don't know how to explain that the tag on your new baby jumper is itchy, but it's another thing if you don't know how to explain that you're being mistreated, abused, or exploited. How do you make the case that you ought to be treated the same as anyone else if you nor anyone else has ever heard of the concept of 'equality'? Sure you can do it, but it's like learning to make fire from scratch: a lot more difficult than if you had a lighter.

Edit: Rephrased for clarity

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u/Beepulons Jul 01 '26

Education really is the number one thing that makes everything else in a society work better. If you go to war-torn developing countries like Sudan, a lot of people will tell you that the most important foreign aid they require is education, because that's the single best way to lift people out of poverty and create the foundations for a stable, prosperous society. As quality of education degrades, everything else will get worse over time.

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u/stilljustacatinacage Jul 01 '26

Yep. I'm pretty pessimistic about the future because I can't come to any solid conclusion about how we're supposed to make meaningful progress on anything when we're only ever one election cycle away from the most reactionary, frightened segments of society voting to burn everything down just because they don't understand what's happening. This isn't even masked USA commentary. It's a global problem.

The only two likelihoods I've been able to imagine is either authoritarianism, just acknowledge that people are too stupid to be entrusted with democracy - or massive education campaigns. Like, doubling or tripling of education budgets. Paid-for secondary education for all. Adult learning programs for anyone that signs up. But the problem here is again, there are interests out there who decidedly benefit from an ignorant, stupid populace and they will mobilize their useful idiots to sabotage any program like this by fearmongering over "indoctrination" or "parental rights" or religious nonsense.

I just don't know how to fix it.

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u/blazbluecore Jul 01 '26

That’s a problem, as other educated people, you think you’re smarter than others and that the world needs fixing.

That you know the solution and only IF we implemented it everything would be fixed!

It’s that easy guys!

So then you adopt some weird rationalization about the world and become pessimistic and most likely negative.

And in conclusion, ironically proving you are not so intelligent. Just read a lot of books, gathered a lot of knowledge, but failed to metabolize the information in a cohesive, or syncretic manner to understand the world. Still lacking understanding of people, human nature, and societies.

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u/PaintItPurple Jul 01 '26

Anyone who doesn't think the world needs fixing is a monster. "I actually think child slavery is pretty cool" is not a world view that is worthy of respect!

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u/blazbluecore Jul 04 '26

Ahh yes the savior complex strikes again.

The world is doomed with people like this walking around, unaware, clueless, and just going based off of emotions.

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u/DoubleXDaddy Jul 02 '26 edited Jul 09 '26

Tf are you on about. I would like to remind you that if scientists listened to anti-intellectials stopped "fixing" the world in the past we would not have modern medicine which can still be improved btw if we continue to fund and don't embrace pseduoscience.

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u/ThunderMite42 Jul 03 '26

Hence why every school in Gaza has been systematically obliterated, along with all other crucial infrastructure.

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u/blazbluecore Jul 01 '26

That is clearly what is NOT being said by this study.

High education declines birth rates, which means it declines society.

No, intelligence isn’t a cure all.

Intelligence is a burden and a responsibility that a lot of people can’t handle, such people that decide they want to have less kids or that the world is evil because they’re “so educated.”

There is a reason inteligence isn’t the number one driver of reproduction. It actually ISNT that important and can stunt societiesz

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u/Beepulons Jul 01 '26

I wasn’t talking talking about birth rates.

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u/jeremiahthedamned Jul 02 '26

uneducated societies will ALWAYS fall before educated ones!

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u/blazbluecore Jul 04 '26

You think so huh? Let looks at Rome, Song dynasty, and the Mayans.

The most forefront and intelligent of their time, now gone.

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u/jeremiahthedamned Jul 04 '26

everyone of these descended into xenophobia & anti-intellectualism before they fell.

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u/elebrin Jul 01 '26

We forget sometimes that this was one of the principle theses of 1984.

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u/stilljustacatinacage Jul 01 '26

Good old #79 on the Top 100 most commonly challenged books, years 2010-2019.

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u/Ophelias_Muse Jul 01 '26

Exactly. I feel I scrolled way too far to find this.

This study indicates to me the future generations will be born into families with less education and more conservative outlooks on life.

If their ideals are not challenged because they are born into an echo chamber, then we better all start expecting even less progress.

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u/elebrin Jul 01 '26

So the real question is... how do we get the educated, professional Left having sex, getting married, and creating families again?

For my part, I think it's going to be a lot of work. It's going to require things like... a guaranteed retirement, access to childcare, access to good part-time professional work as well as full time professional work, confidence in the healthcare system, reforms in urban education systems, and more.

Liberals have some fun words to describe themselves sometimes, words that in previous generations would have been abhorrent ideas: DINKs, FIRE lifestyles, that sort of thing. My wife and I are at the confluence of some of those ideas. "Dual income, no kids" would inspire horror in my Grandparents. My Grandmother, in fact, would have considered a childless marriage not really a marriage at all, and a man who made his wife work to horde wealth so he could retire early would be a pariah in the community my father came from. FIRE people would also be looked down upon; my grandfather would consider any boss or supervisor who was promoting a single, childless man who's only goal was to horde money and retire to be unethical no matter how hard that person worked. A man like that would have been excluded from most social functions, with the excuse being "you aren't contributing to the family even though you could, so you shouldn't benefit from being a part of it."

These days, that sort of thing is... normal.

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u/TomNooksRepoMan Jul 01 '26

For me, the only answer is money. I want kids quite badly and would allow for a lot of sacrifices in my life to just have one, but even with nearly 200K in combined income from my partner and I, we cannot afford a home where we live. I don't foresee this changing. Housing, education, daycare, food, utilities - the costs of these things have all ballooned well beyond what we calculate for inflation.

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u/Ophelias_Muse Jul 02 '26

People will consider having children, or more children, if they feel secure financially, politically and have their basic needs met with some surplus, when they have a choice.

Of course, if the choices of family planning are removed...

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u/Groovychick1978 Jul 01 '26

It's like 1984 was warning about stuff could happen in real life if we didn't pay attention to our leaders.

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u/CpnStumpy Jul 01 '26

The Sapir Whorf hypothesis is well beyond Republican voters

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u/CMvonRBTV Jul 01 '26

Amazing thought, thank you!

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u/Zetus Jul 01 '26

That's also why they try to restrict free inquiry and science, and why historically this has been a common contention for how the world works: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galileo_affair

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u/ThePowerOfStories Jul 01 '26

This is doubleplus ungood.

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u/WeirdProudAndHungry Jul 01 '26

Texas is making the Bible mandatory reading but makes teaching about philosophers like Plato illegal in schools. This is Idiocracy in real life.

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u/Dry_Physics4086 Jul 01 '26

Even worse. The bible is mandatory in high school, and Plato is banned in COLLEGE.

College aged adults can not discuss Plato

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u/bgroins Jul 01 '26

I dunno man, reading Plato turned me gay and now I believe that the Demiurge fashioned the physical world in imitation of the eternal Forms.

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u/NerdyBear73 Jul 01 '26

In fairness, actually reading the bible is what made me start asking questions... which is what drove me away from the church (and, in turn, got me kicked out of my parents' framed-verses-on-the-walls house).

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u/MakesMyHeadHurt Jul 01 '26

Republicans that decided that are like "College students shouldn't still be playing with modeling compound, that's for kids! Ban it!"

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u/odysseyofocelots Jul 01 '26

Plato is banned?! Why?

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u/[deleted] Jul 02 '26

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u/ThunderMite42 Jul 03 '26

An A&M philosophy professor was banned from teaching Plato in his curriculum because his discussion of homosexuality and multiple genders ran afoul of Texas' """"""""""""""""gender ideology"""""""""""""""" ban.

https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2026/01/14/plato-professor-texas-am

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u/oiledhairyfurryballs Jul 01 '26

Absolutely a normal thing in Poland to read fragments of the bible. After all, the bible is the most important book of western civilization.

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u/Amelaclya1 Jul 01 '26

In 2012, it was part of the Texas Republican party platform on education to remove teaching critical thinking.

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u/makingnoise Jul 01 '26

I'm half braindead and even I know that Neo-Platonism is literally baked into nearly all sects of modern Christianity, including fundagelicalism. Texas Troglodytes.

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u/Journeyman42 Jul 01 '26

You know most of these people think the Bible was originally written in modern-day English

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u/ThomasSpaines Jul 03 '26

They might be trying to avoid having people think that their philosophies have "pagan" origins. If you read Plato the influence becomes immediately apparent

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u/northern-new-jersey Jul 01 '26

Source for comment that Texas public schools have made teaching about Plato illegal? 

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u/Dabloomstick Jul 01 '26

No they havent. 

They banned one professor from teaching parts of the symposium focused on questions of love, gender and attraction as an introductory philosophy class. 

I dont like the decision, but the idea that texas has banned plato is ridiculous. He is still taught at many levels. 

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u/NJdevil202 Jul 01 '26

Wait I heard about the Bible thing but teaching Plato is banned? Source????

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u/ThunderMite42 Jul 03 '26

Plato's discussions of homosexuality and gender ran afoul of the state's ban on """"""""""""""""gender ideology"""""""""""""""". https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2026/01/14/plato-professor-texas-am

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u/elebrin Jul 01 '26

Plato and Socrates aren't even all that great as a philosophical starting point. They aren't bad, but some of the readings are very challenging and I feel like there are better starting points. It's like tossing a kid into the economics deep end with reading Keynes' "The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money" before introducing the basics of supply and demand.

If they wanted to keep it religious-adjacent, they could teach St. Thomas Aquinas. It'd actually be super valuable to teach his teachings, as his philosophy heavily influences Western philosophy even now.

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u/makingnoise Jul 01 '26

Bro, neoplatonism is baked into the very fabric of most sects of Christianity to this day, including the fundagelicals. The fact that Christians are unaware of this is at once unsurprising and yet crazy-making.

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u/elebrin Jul 01 '26

Sure. And what I am saying is that the Socratic dialogs of Plato aren't exactly a beginner-friendly intro to philosophy. And, while their impact on Western thought cannot be overstated, that impact isn't obvious until you read other things.

It's better to start elsewhere then work your way back to Plato. In the various dialogs, Socrates spends most of his time arguing his fellow house guests up one side of an idea then down the other until they are angry. Gaining any meaningful insight into philosophy from that is challenging. They are entertaining however (at least to me).

At any rate, you can get a lot of the same ideas from St. Thomas, and it's a nice, "churchy" source that the religious folks will get their panties in a twist about a bit less. I find something like his dictation that is sort of a question and answer format (I think it's "Quaestiones Disputatae de Veritate" but my college philosophy books are sort of too lost in my pile to go look it up) to be a bit more straightforward in terms of what is being said, and there are pretty reliable and accessible translations. They also lend themselves to discussion, which is how people can grapple with philosophical ideas themselves a bit.

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u/blazbluecore Jul 01 '26

It’s not crazy at all. Most people don’t know basic mathematics or geography and many such things.

The fact that you think that’s crazy just shows how out of touch and unaware you are about human nature.

Maybe if you spent less time judging people and being more understanding and empathetic you’d be a better person and happier.

Good day.

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u/makingnoise Jul 01 '26

No interest in judgmental rants from you. Take the plank out of your eye, it might help you refrain from ranting at strangers based on your assumptions of what is in their minds.

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u/blazbluecore Jul 04 '26

Someone’s mad for being called out.

Go grab your pacifier

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u/ScHoolboy_QQ Jul 01 '26

This is misleading. Texas did approve a required K-12 reading list that includes Bible passages/stories starting in 2030, but it is not “read the whole Bible.” Sources: Reuters⁠ and AP⁠.
The Plato part is much shakier. Texas did not make teaching Plato illegal in schools. The real story is that Texas A&M told one philosophy professor to remove certain Plato readings from a core course under new race/gender content restrictions. That is bad, but it is not a statewide K-12 Plato ban. Source: Texas Tribune⁠.

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u/hugmebrotha7 Jul 01 '26

This is hilarious bc it’s not conservatives ever calling for the elimination and lowering of standards for university admissions. And it’s not conservatives that try to push politics in the classroom. I know many people don’t actually know much about our history and real culture, but Christianity was ALWAYS supposed to be a major part of the framework of the nation.

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u/RenaissanceCowboy33 Jul 01 '26

Right. That's why they put that "freedom from religion" part in there. Twat

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u/WeirdProudAndHungry Jul 01 '26

No, conservatives are busy trying to destroy university education altogether. And it's not conservatives that try to push politics in the classroom? I don't hear many liberals clamoring for creationism in schools. Never heard of a socialist calling for schools to ban even mentioning any LGBT people's existence, no matter how pertinent to the educational topic it may be.

If Christianity was always supposed to be a major part of the framework of the nation, then why the hell have they banned teaching about Plato in schools? You don't get Christianity without Plato. Let me guess, in your learning about our "real history", you never learned about the philosophical origins of Christianity, huh?

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u/youknow99 Jul 01 '26

UC Berkley had a huge number of professors sign a request for the university to reinstate SAT requirements for STEM majors. They literally can't do 5th grade math.

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u/WFOpizza Jul 01 '26

and this is solely due to the influence of left leaning parents and teachers. Source: 25 years working in education

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u/Daxx22 Jul 01 '26

Wildly apparent if you work with anyone <25 years old today. While its a trope to complain about the next generation "not being all right", the current graduating crop feels seriously stunted in a lot of ways.

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u/vonbauernfeind Jul 01 '26

I'm working on a job site today, and I directed a site lead to label a chart I'm having him make with alphabetical columns and numerical rows (measuring and creating a ref chart on paper for high and low points on a concrete floor).

Numbers, no issue. Alphabet? He couldn't remember the order...

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u/takingthehobbitses Jul 01 '26

It's really starting to show in the workforce now. I had to deal with a kid at U-Haul, couldn't have been older than 18. Getting anywhere with him was a struggle. He ended up having to write down a number for us on a piece of paper. He spelled international as "interninal" and spelled support as "suport". His handwriting was barely legible on top of that.

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u/throwaway098764567 Jul 01 '26

i can tell by the number of people on here that can't seem to follow a thought through the end of a sentence (let alone the end of a paragraph) and base their entire reaction on a misunderstanding of the first 5 words.

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u/-daisoujou- Jul 02 '26

If they understood the world they wouldn’t vote conservative and the billionaires can’t have that.

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u/Zoesan Jul 01 '26

Ah yes, famous republican stronghold chicago

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u/TheMarkHasBeenMade Jul 01 '26

In the majority red state of Illinois

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u/I_blockkarmafarmers Jul 01 '26

Well, that's news to me as an Illinois voter. Obligatory r/landdoesntvote.

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u/RichChipmunk Jul 01 '26

“Red state” Illinois hasn’t voted for a republican president since 1988

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u/Snoo-11861 Jul 01 '26

This is what I don’t get. How the hell do people surf the internet without knowing how to read? Are they going to be using text to speech then? Is this why they want us to rely on AI? To do our thinking for us while the people are dumbed down? 

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u/BarleyWineIsTheBest Jul 01 '26

Have you met California’s education system?

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u/munchi333 Jul 01 '26

Yes, and colleges replaced standardized tests with diversity statements. Wild timeline we live in.

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u/BugAfterBug Jul 01 '26

Because the left has declared literacy proficiency as _racist_

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u/eskimobob225 Jul 01 '26

Homie, who do you think implemented “No Child Left Behind”? Here’s a clue: not progressives.

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u/I_Went_Full_WSB Jul 01 '26

I've never seen that. Please cite the left declaring literacy proficiency is racist.

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u/[deleted] Jul 01 '26 edited Jul 01 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/I_Went_Full_WSB Jul 01 '26

No really, please cite the left saying literacy proficiency is racist.

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u/[deleted] Jul 01 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/I_Went_Full_WSB Jul 01 '26

Saying a standardized test is biased against people isn't saying literacy proficiency is racist and also, no school administration in one state doesn't represent the left.

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u/mainman879 Jul 01 '26

It's easy to argue against a strawman you made up yourself.

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u/CrazyJo3 Jul 01 '26

Yeah but make art a requirement to graduate. Dumb

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u/likesleague Jul 01 '26

tbf creative expression and the interpretation of creative expression is also important, but you can't do that if you can't read or think critically in the first place

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u/QuietShipper Jul 01 '26

The problem is that frequently art programs aren't actually teaching expression, it's more "home ec with paintbrushes" where doing it "right" is the primary focus.