Attitudes to poverty, the protestant ethic, and political affiliation: A preliminary investigation

This study investigated attitudes to the poor as measured by MacDonald's Poverty Scale and the Protestant Ethic Scale. Supporters of the British Conservative Party were found to have more negative attitudes to the poor, and were more likely to blame the poor for their fate than the British Labour Party. Supporters of the Liberal/SDP Alliance occupied position between the other two parties on this issue. These results accord with others found in India regarding attribution of the causes of poverty and political ideology.