What Is an Ideology?

An ideology is a set of beliefs that affects our outlook on the
world. Our ideology is our most closely held set of values and feelings, and it acts
as the filter through which we see everything and everybody. In fact, these beliefs
are often so close to us that we do not realize that they are there. We simply think
that our beliefs are natural and obviously true. Religion is one type of ideology,
and religious belief affects a person’s views.

Characteristics of an Ideology

Ideologies can vary greatly in the following ways:

Complexity: Some ideologies are very simple, whereas
others, such as Marxism, are quite detailed.

Example: “Don’t trust anybody over
30!” was a simple ideology held by many young Americans in the
1960s.

Consistency: Sometimes the ideas that constitute a single
ideology conflict with one another. Similarly, sometimes a person’s views
shift significantly over time.

Example: Benito Mussolini, the father
of Italian fascism, was a communist when he was younger. The fact that
fascism was strongly anticommunist never seemed to bother him.

Flexibility: Some elaborate ideologies, like some
religious beliefs, allow almost no wiggle room and have answers to all
questions. Other ideologies have a great deal of flexibility.

Example: The Catholic Catechism,
which details the beliefs of the Catholic Church, is thousands of pages long
and covers almost every topic imaginable. There is little room for
individual interpretation. In contrast, the ideology of libertarianism
encourages individuals to make decisions for themselves.