Conservatism was defined by acceptance of existing inequality as deserved

Evidence

The Berkeley group took the definitive component of conservatism to be an attachment to “things as they are,” a resistance to social change. Primary values for the American conservative seemed to include practicality, ambition, and financial success. “Most people get pretty much what they deserve,” the conservative holds. The rich have earned their wealth and the poor their poverty. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 461

Categorization

• DEFINE: Operationally defines conservatism as system-justifying acceptance of earned inequality and resistance to change.
• XREF: Directly prefigures Jost’s own later system justification theory — the belief that people get what they deserve is its core premise.