Authoritarian Orientation Research Articles

The authoritarian orientation in liberal democracies: Labor market and workplace authoritarianism

The authoritarian orientation in liberal democracies: Labor market and workplace authoritarianism

Politically engaged but unwilling to protest: analyzing the role of authoritarian orientations and internet use on protest participation behavior

ABSTRACT Several studies have investigated the effects of internet use on protest participation behavior. However, fewer have explored how personal dispositions of individuals moderate the impact of the internet. This study explores the relationship between political engagement, internet use, authoritarian orientation, and protest participation in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, and Myanmar. First, analysis of fourth-wave of the Asian Barometer survey data suggests a political engagement-driven stratification in protest participation across all settings. Second, internet use is positively associated with protest participation but only in authoritarian states, and citizens’ authoritarian orientation reduces the likelihood of protest action. Third, high authoritarian orientation subdues the participatory benefits of internet use for politically engaged citizens. Overall, the study confirms that politically engaged citizens are more capable of exploiting the benefits offered by the internet. Still, authoritarianism can inhibit the mobilizing potentials presented by the internet. The theoretical importance of attitudinal factors in protest participation is discussed.

Comparative evidence on cultural variability in authoritarianism: An ethical and relational perspective

Is authoritarianism a universal psychological phenomenon? Does the concept of authoritarianism in its current form effectively explain anti-democratic tendencies across societies? From a cultural perspective and using data of Chinese citizens in the fourth wave of the Asian Barometer Survey, this article identifies an authoritarian variant of an ethical and relational origin. This article argues that the received view of authoritarianism, which is conceptually bounded to prejudice, represents but one brand that arises as a function of threat. In paternalistic cultures such as Confucianism, people may develop hierarchical orientations through the learning of certain relational ethics. Called Confucian Authoritarian Orientation (CAO), this authoritarian variant encodes the following three attitudinal aspects: (1) authority reverence, (2) authority worship, and (3) authority dependence. Empirical results show that CAO stands as an entirely different construct from prejudice-bounded concepts such as Right-Wing Authoritarianism. Furthermore, CAO also serves as a powerful predictor of political docility in individuals; it is correlated with stronger political trust and weaker political efficacy.

Authoritarianism and Right-Wing Voting in Brazil

AbstractMounting evidence shows that authoritarian orientations exert a powerful influence on public opinion attitudes and candidate support. The 2018 Brazilian elections brought to power Jair Bolsonaro, a candidate with an open disregard for democracy and democratic institutions. This study examines Brazilian voters’ differences in authoritarianism and electoral support for a right-wing authoritarian candidate. It employs the AmericasBarometer national survey data to demonstrate that authoritarianism is politically important in Brazil because of its association with attitudes toward the use of force as well as with conservative social and political attitudes. The effect of authoritarianism on the probability of voting for Bolsonaro is as large as that of other relevant political behavior variables such as ideology, negative partisanship, or religiosity, whereas nonauthoritarian voters spread their votes across other candidates. Although these other variables are also relevant to Bolsonaro’s victory, his candidacy was uniquely able to mobilize a coalition of authoritarian voters. Whether or not authoritarianism remains a salient cleavage in the electorate is considered along with the consequences of this potential divide for political competition in Brazilian politics.

Trends of Power Devolution in South Asia: A Comparative Appraisal of Pakistan’s Local Government System under the Civil-Military Regimes

In the South Asian countries, the trends of power sharing, decentralization and power evolution have not only always remained a pertinent debate for the consolidation of democracy and good governance, but also static political systems due to their multiethnic realities, multilingual differences, multicultural diversification, and their authoritarian orientation in the respective countries. Historically, the transfer of power through the local system of government (LGS) was seen as an important tool to accelerate the transition to representative democracy on the subcontinent. However, it was largely aimed at creating a new political class that would support colonial rule and meet the political demands of the local population for power sharing within the boundaries of the colonial government structure. Due to their embedded interests, the colonial legacies in South Asian states offered non-representative state institutions such as the military enough space to influence the transformation process of democracy. The paper has two main objectives: (1) to explore the concepts of power devolution and their associative nomenclature; (2) to analysis of the political and administrative dimensions of decentralization to underpin the structure of decentralization in South Asia in general and Pakistan in particular. The results of the study are that the lack of the weakest local government system in the South Asian region in general, and in Pakistan in particular, is due to the colonial legacy of an ongoing controlled political mindset in the form of bureaucracy, frequent military coups, a lack of political will to develop a welfare state in Pakistan. It uses the qualitative research methods of phenomenology and correlation, which sheds light on the meaning of relative terms often used to explain delegation of authority for political and administrative purposes.

Political Culture and the Crisis of Democracy. An Analysis of Citizenship Motivations to Justify a Coup D’état in Argentina

Latin American democracies are experiencing high instability, signed by economic and political crises and increasing social conflict. In this scenario, the continuity and further development of democracies are far from being granted. From a political psychology perspective, we are interested in understanding public motivations for justifying an authoritarian interruption of the democratic order. On a 454 Cordoba citizens sample (mean age= 37.3, SD=14.22; 52.7% women, 47.3% men), we conducted a Discriminant Analysis to identify the more relevant dimensions for classifying people according to their attitudes towards a coup d’état. Six variables constituted the linear discriminant function resulting from a stepwise procedure (λ = 0.67, X2 = 151.5, gl = 6, p = 0) and enabled to classify 77.3% of the cases correctly. Conservative, normative, and ideological orientations were the more relevant dimensions to predict the justification of a state coup. Additionally, we identified two different attitudinal profiles among the people who are willing to justify a coup, mainly differentiated by their ideological orientations through a two-step cluster analysis. We accounted for a small group of people who justify a non-democratic exit to the socio-political conflict based on progressive ideological attitudes more than conservative or authoritarian orientations. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Making the Long March Online: Some Cultural Dynamics of Digital Political Participation in Three Chinese Societies

This study examines the authoritarian conditioning of political expression on social media in three Chinese societiesby analyzing three parallel surveys comprising 6942 respondents from mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Results demonstrate that the use of social media to gather political information triggers politically expressive use of social media and indirectly predicts offline non-institutionalized political participation. Individuals' authoritarian orientation, however, moderates such indirect effects. Only people who demonstrate low or moderate adherence to authoritarian value systems exemplify this mediation model. Those with high levels of authoritarian orientation are not exemplary. Furthermore, the extent to which social media use interacts with authoritarian orientation to build a relationship with political participation presents two different patterns across three Chinese societies. The moderated mediating effect described here exists in Hong Kong and Taiwan but not in mainland China. Finally, we discuss the implications of these findings.

The end of the “Strong Hand”? Critical Discourse-Analysis of the Alignment in the Political Culture of the Russian People

This paper is dedicated to studying the subjective meanings and motivations which modern Russians attribute to the normative view on the role of the “strong hand”. It was explored as one of the key characteristics of authoritarianism in the Russian people’s political culture. The author studies its internal structure, to what extent this view is in demand, how exactly this notion is reproduced and rationalized at a discourse level. This view was investigated using critical discourse analysis, while identifying the implicit power balance based on data from semi-structured in-depth interviews with respondents from regional and district centers as well as from rural areas – these were people from the most conservative social groups (according to quantitative study findings based on data from the “Levada-Center”). Upon investigation it turns out that the “strong hand” discourse structure is extremely contradictory and heterogeneous. On one hand, at an abstract value level, it is very popular and continuously being reproduced. The “strong hand” consists of seven essential elements, subjective meanings: “continuity”, “order”, “rigidity”, “no alternative”, “personification”, “anti-establishment”, “folk character”. On the other hand, at a personal level, such an orientation can lose a significant amount of its potency when the context is broadened, supplemented with institutional alternatives etc. However stable alternatives do not seem to be appearing in the field of discourse. The author concludes that the demand for a strong hand is not an effect of a “special” political culture, but rather a combination of many factors: preserving the authoritarian regime’s institutions, citizens` rational strategies for adapting to them, a failed democratic transition, the painful reforms of the 1990’s, the intentional exploitation of this orientation by the political elite, etc. However, there are reasons to assume that this authoritarian orientation is in a severe state of crisis. It has no effect on the political regime’s legitimization for which the “strong hand” is the most important symbolic resource.

A Frommian perspective on the socio-psychological structure of post-fascism in liberal democracies

ABSTRACT My research explores Erich Fromm’s social theories of narcissism, alienation and authoritarianism for the purpose of linking those theories together, thereby analysing current populist phenomena as an extension of a fascist development in terms of Enzo Traverso’s conception of post-fascism. In my view, Fromm’s critical social theory of narcissism, which pertains to his two other theories, has great potential to unravel current political issues in liberal democracies that are generally tackled in terms of populism. Through a demonstration of the theoretical scope of Fromm’s social theory, which sheds light on pathological social and political phenomena in historical continuity, I argue that the primary tasks of Critical Theory in Frommian terms are to divulge the sources of fascist orientations in seemingly democratic practice and to offer appropriate remedies for these difficulties. In this light, I conclude that in terms of a Frommian social theory of narcissism, fascist types of politics thrive even in advanced liberal-democratic countries, taking the form of authoritarian populism, particularly where society rests on a narcissistic character structure intertwined with an authoritarian orientation.

THE REVIEW on the monograph by Archie J. Bahm “Why be moral?” New Mexico. Albuquerque. World books, 1992, 435 p.

At present, a special role is played by socio-philosophical studies of a worldview and methodological nature. There is a need for systematization and generalization of knowledge of the humanities and natural sciences about a person on a united integrative scientific and philosophical basis. This makes it possible to take a fresh look at the solution of the urgent problems facing society in the modern transitional era, when old values lose their significance, and new ones are only just beginning to take shape in public consciousness. A person should be in the center of attention not only as a natural or socially active being, but also as a responsible person. In connection with the foregoing, the original conception of the integrated personality of the contemporary American humanist philosopher Archie J. Bahm (1907–1996), set forth in his monograph “Why be moral?” (1992) and who is a representative of a special philosophical trend – organicism. His works have no translational analogues in domestic literature. In this digest for the first time we conduct a brief study of the main provisions of his personality theory and its relations with social groups of different levels to which one belongs in a democratic society. This is especially actual in the light of the transition of Russian society from an authoritarian orientation to democratic forms of government, taking into account its national identity and its own historical experience.

Predictors of Euroscepticism in six Western Balkan countries

ABSTRACT Based on a combination of national representative surveys and semi-structured interviews conducted in six Western Balkan countries, the study represents a pioneering attempt at a systematic, comparative analysis of Euroscepticism in the Western Balkans. By employing a theoretical framework that tests the effects of utilitarian, political and cultural factors, the study identifies and interprets the strongest socio-demographical and attitudinal predictors of Euroscepticism. The study demonstrates that all three theoretical models have some explanatory power regarding Eurosceptical attitudes in the Western Balkans, albeit to different degrees. While utilitarian predictors have limited effects, domestic proxies and especially cultural factors such as traditional values, authoritarian orientations and particularly religious affiliation appear as the strongest predictors of Euroscepticism.

Mainframes and mandarins: The impact of internet use on institutional trust in East Asia

The roles of contextual determinants such as culture and political regime in existing studies of Internet use and institutional trust remain underexplored. Adopting a cultural-institutional perspective, we ask: How does Internet use relate to institutional trust? Under what conditions is the impact of Internet use on institutional trust most potent? Do authoritarian orientation and perceived institutional responsiveness mediate the relationship? Is this mediating process moderated by the degree of democratic freedom? A total of 20,667 respondents from 14 East Asian countries/territories completed questionnaires. Our results show that the indirect effect of Internet use on institutional trust via authoritarian orientation was stronger for countries/territories with a low degree of democratic freedom, while the indirect effect of Internet use on institutional trust via perceived institutional responsiveness was stronger for countries/territories with a higher degree of democratic freedom.

STATUS IN THE GROUP AND CHARACTERISTICS OF COMMUNICATION OF SENIOR PRESCHOOLERS: PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PEDAGOGICAL ASPECT

The article analyses the theories of scientists and substantiates the role of communication characteristics of pre-schoolers in the formation of the status in the group; It was found that the mental and personal development of a child in senior preschool age is determined by the peculiarity of the social situation of development - being in a preschool education establishment, where the status in the group depends on the characteristics of communication, namely the communication orientation and the level of communication needs. The preschool educational establishment imposed new requirements on a child concerning language development: the language should be literate, brief, clear in thoughts, expressive; in communication, language constructions must meet the expectations of culture. Communication becomes a special school of social relations. The child is still unconsciously discovering the existence of different styles of communication. Most leaders and active members of a group are children who have a high and medium level of need for communication and dialogic orientation. The study found that the main reason influencing the emergence of newly formed structures in the personality of senior pre-schoolers is a change in the social situation of development, which makes new demands on behaviour, activities, learning, the system of relations with adults and peers, new characteristics of communication. The need for communication is one of the main sociogenic traits of a person. It arises in the process of gaining experience in interpersonal interaction. It is based on the need for emotional contact, socialized search for contacts and the appropriate technique of pleasure. It is manifested in the desire of the individual to belong to a group, to be a member, to interact with it, to participate in joint activities, to be together, etc. The need for communication is the starting point that connects a person with those people who encircle him or her, ensure his / her development as a person. The direct influence of communication orientation and the level of communication needs on the status of the senior pre-schoolers was statistically confirmed. The most effective was the dialogic orientation in communication, and the most negative influence on the status in the team is the authoritarian orientation in communication.

Clinging to power, clinging to life: Rightwing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, and attitudes toward life extension

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between political ideology and attitudes toward life extension among college students (N = 484). Older age and male gender were associated with more positive attitudes toward life extension, while religious commitment was not. Authoritarian aggression/submission and social dominance orientation were associated with more positive attitudes toward life extension. The results suggest older people, men, and individuals higher in authoritarian traits and social dominance orientation may be more likely to use life-extending biomedical technology.

Current state of democratic and authoritarian attitudes of the population of Ukraine (2018–2019)

The article deals with democratic and authoritarian orientation as one of the manifestation of political culture.The basis for the analysis were open data (an international rating of democracy, conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit) and results of a study of the state of political culture which was conducted by the Institute of Sociology of the NAS of Ukraine. According to the Democracy Index of the Economist Intelligence Unit, Ukraine is a country with a “hybrid democracy”, ranking 84th (out of 167 countries). The results of democratic and authoritarian orientation of the research which was conducted by the Institute of Sociology confirm the crisis of democracy. The proposed article describes the validation of indices of democracy and authoritarianism. The selected scales have proven their reliability and validity. Validisation of the scale took place in two stages. The tasks of the first stage included the construction of a theoretical model. In the second stage, there were analyzed: the interpretation of the scales, the consistency of the scale and investigation of the scale structure (Alpha Cronbach, exploratory factor analysis), index construction and validization.The results of indexes of the democracy orientation in Ukraine, developed countries and the authoritarian orientation indicate skepticism, which confirms the results of international studies. To date, Ukraine is characterized as a country with strong authoritarian orientation of people.The main factors that determine the attitude of the population of Ukraine to democracy are: disappointment with the general state of affairs, lack of patterns of democratic behavior, the low political awareness of their rights and levers of influence, mistrust of elections, paternalistic orientation, low civic responsibility and low trust to the main Institutes of power.

Beyond the differential gains model: the effects of authoritarian orientation, social media use, and political discussion on political participation in Taiwan and South Korea

ABSTRACTIn an attempt to investigate the roles of authoritarian orientation, social media use, and political discussion in shaping political participation in transitional democracies, this study analyzes nationwide surveys (N = 1,637; N = 1,200) from two third-wave democracies: Taiwan and South Korea, within the theoretical framework of the Differential Gains Model (DGM). The hierarchical regression indicated that in both societies, the effects of social media use and political discussion were positively associated with political participation; authoritarian orientation was only negatively associated with political participation in Taiwan. No significant moderation effects of the two communication variables emerged, whereas a significant-moderated moderation effect among the three predictors emerged in South Korea. This study extends the existing literature on DGM in three ways. First, it optimizes the conventional DGM through incorporating a new ideological variable – authoritarian orientation; second, it buttresses previous findings but also reveals results that were at odds with the extant body of knowledge; third, it bridges the gap of single contextualization by extending the DGM research to the non-Western democracies.

Political culture as a factor of civilized lobbying establishment in contemporary Russia

The article is devoted to the study of civilized lobbyism formation in contemporary Russia in the context of the political culture peculiarities. The author explains the use of the concept of “civilized lobbyism” from the standpoint of the presence of various interpretations of lobbying in political science, which prevents a clear separation of legitimate and illegitimate forms of interests’ representation, while the object of research is primarily the legal technologies of influence on power. Political culture is regarded as one of the subjective factors determining the functioning of the mechanisms of interests’ representation in the political system, as well as the specifics of lobbying activities in each particular state. The influence of political culture on the process of lobbying in Russia is analyzed not only at the level of political orientations and behavior of individuals and groups, but also at the level of institutional structures. To study the impact of the political culture on the formation of social practices of lobbying, the author refers to the institutional concept of D. North, in which the mechanism of functioning of social and political institutions is revealed through the correlation of formal and informal rules, norms, attitudes and behaviours. In the context of the development of the democratic representation of interests in contemporary Russia particular attention is given to the problem of preserving and dominating historically established authoritarian orientations in the relations of society and power, as well as the traditions of paternalism and clientellism. However, the author believes that it is not correct to reduce the influence from the political culture mostly to the national traditions. It is concluded that the fundamental condition for the development of civilized lobbying in present day Russia is the is the parallel formation of legal foundations and the corresponding matrix of political culture, both at the level of subjects of lobbying relations and at the level of interests’ representation institutions.

The Effect of Leadership Style on Employee Engagement: The Moderating Role of Task Structure

According to the social exchange theory, based on the 335 valid questionnaire data, the article uses the hierarchical regression method to examine the influence of authoritarian leadership and charismatic leadership on employee engagement and the moderating effect of task structure. The results show that charismatic leadership is significantly positively correlated with employee engagement, and there is a significant positive correlation between vigor, dedication and absorption. Authoritarian leadership is significantly negatively correlated with employee engagement, and is significantly negatively correlated with vigor and dedication. The task structure plays a moderating role between authoritarian leadership and employee engagement. Studies have shown that combined with contextual factors can better explain the role of leadership quality in leadership effectiveness, and also provide guidance and suggestions for leadership selection and practice, that is, in the context of high-task structure, organizations should prioritize the selection of individuals with authoritarian orientation as leaders.

Virtuous Governance and the Chinese Way

AbstractLucian W. Pye, the renowned American Sinologist, argues that power/authority in Chinese culture follows a paternalistic structure, that the distinction in Chinese society between public and private has historically been in a state of tension, and therefore that Chinese governance has always emphasized central power over local self-governance, suppressed cultural pluralism, and rebuffed multipolar structures of power. Even though the inherent tension identified by Pye certainly exists, the thesis that Chinese culture has a deeply ingrained authoritarian orientation is simply incorrect. In order to resolve the tension between the public and private realms, Chinese thinkers—from the various strands of legalist thought to the Confucian notion of “kingly governance”—have premised the division of power on the priority of preserving centralized power. In other words, diffusion of power has been premised on the idea of an already collectivized authority. Therefore, the power structure that defines Chinese culture has certainly not been the polycentric one that Pye implicitly values, but neither has it been the centralist, authoritarian structure that he abhors. Rather, it has been the Confucian model premised on the values of governance through ritual and moral virtue. Insights from cultural psychology help explain ethical governance—that is, rule by an ethical meritocracy—in Chinese society and culture.

Adolescents’ Political Trust in Asian Societies: The Roles of Authoritarian Orientations and Corruption Perception

Adolescents’ Political Trust in Asian Societies: The Roles of Authoritarian Orientations and Corruption Perception