Hello Codeforces,

Today, I wanted to make a blog to identify a possible link between political orientation (on the traditional left to right scale) versus Codeforces rating (influenced from this blog).

Notes on the Political Spectrum

The political terms left wing and right wing (which comprise the modern political spectrum) originally started as a reference to politicians’ seating arrangements in the French National Assembly during the French Revolution.

Left wing beliefs are liberal in that they believe society is best served with an expanded role for the government that aligns with progressive policies furthering social, economic, and environmental justice. These include entitlement programs such as social security, healthcare reform, welfare systems, and other social safety nets. The expanded social role of government also includes protections for disadvantaged and minority groups – insofar as these groups cannot thrive without proper assistance to level the playing field.

Right wingers typically believe in limited government, full economic freedom, and religious traditions. And they believe these values should be preserved over the rights of the full populous. Laws should still not allow people to infringe upon the right of others. This also means that the free market should regulate itself and decide what is best for the economy. There shouldn’t be substantial social rights or welfare programs: people should take care of themselves. Policies should be optimized to serve the private market.

Measuring Your Political Beliefs

There are some great online resources for measuring your political beliefs. While most have a US-bias, they are generally applicable to non-American politics as well.

• Pew Research Center: Political Typology Quiz
• Political Personality Test
• The Political Compass: Test

Table

Hopefully you've learned a bit about politics. Here's the table for you to vote on :)!