My new piece in @TheAtlantic this AM previews the thesis of a book project I’ve been working on. In the severe ideological minority at elite universities, conservative students are getting more out of the college experience than their liberal peers. In a word, they are tested, constantly made to articulate and defend their views, often emerging more resilient in the process. 1/N I’m less than a quarter way through the 200 interviews I’ve planned for the book, but the asymmetry in conversations w/ liberal and conservative students is striking. First, conservatives are much more likely to have had the experience of being challenged in class by other students or professors, they are much more likely to attend events w/ speakers w/ whom they disagree, and most have faced and overcome social consequences as a result of their views. Liberals hardly have any of these experiences. 2/N