Social and religious conservatives responded to the cultural upheavals of the 1960s with "social conservatism" and "renewed conservative grassroots activism". Conservatism is a political ideology focused on the preservation of traditional values and beliefs, hearkening back to values believed to be present at the American founding. There was a significant increase in activism and conservatism as a reaction to the counterculture and cultural upheaval of the 1960sā1970s.