Political conservatism is considered as a special case of motivated social cognition. This perspective helps to integrate three classes of theories: (a) conservatism as a mention of personality (such as authoritarianism, dogmatism, intolerance of ambiguity, and ideological polarity), (b) conservatism as an attempt to satisfy epistemic and existential needs (such as needs for cognitive closure, regulatory focus, and terror management), and (c) conservatism as a socio-political ideology arising from the collective rationalization of social systems (such as theories of symbolic politics, social dominance, and system justification). While these classes of theories differ from one another in terms of origins and assumptions, they all lead to the conclusion that political conservatism satisfies the dispositional and situational needs of certain individuals, groups, and systems to explain, order, and justify the status quo and to prevent change and disruption.