Values in Presidential Inaugural Addresses: A Test of Rokeach's Two-Factor Theory of Political Ideology

Abstract

Values expressed in the inaugural addresses of the presidents of the United States were hypothesized to reflect an underlying factor structure characterized by historical value citations of “Freedom” and “Equality,” identified by Rokeach in 1973 as relevant to major political ideologies. A positive emphasis on both values yields a socialistic perspective, while rejection of both values generates fascism. Capitalism endorses “freedom” but rejects “equality,” while an emphasis on “equality” to the exclusion of “freedom” reflects Communism. Blind raters (with interrater reliabilities of .88 to .92) content analyzed the 50 inaugural addresses of 40 presidents, from Washington through Reagan, with reference to eight values (economy, equality, freedom, justice, morality, peace, power, and religion) identified as historically consistent themes in inaugural addresses. Factor analysis yielded two basic dimensions clearly identifiable as “Freedom” and “Equality,” lending substantial support to Rokeach's findings.