Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale Research Articles

Uticaj sociodemografskih karakteristika na desničarsku autoritarnost

Introduction. This paper explores the impact of sociodemographic characteristics on right-wing authoritarianism. Right-wing authoritarianism is defined as a combination of three attitudinal clusters: authoritarian submission, authoritarian aggression, and conventionalism. Objective. The aim of the study is to examine the influence of gender, age, education, and religiosity on right-wing authoritarianism. Methods. In the conducted research, right-wing authoritarianism was defined as the criterion variable, while others were specified as predictors. The Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) scale, consisting of 12 questions and measured at an interval level, was used to assess right-wing authoritarianism. The study was conducted on 112 participants of different genders and ages from the general population in Serbia, using a non-random, voluntary sample. Results. The obtained data show that, on average, respondents exhibit a slightly more pronounced right-wing authoritarianism (both in terms of the overall scale and its subscales). There were gender differences in the degree of right-wing authoritarianism, with men being more authoritarian than women. Age-related differences in the degree of right-wing authoritarianism were found, as well as the fact that respondents with higher levels of education are less prone to authoritarianism, while those who emphasize their religiosity are more inclined toward authoritarianism. Conclusion. The results of this study have important implications for interventions to reduce the prevalence of right-wing authoritarianism and the development of policies to mitigate its negative effects on individuals and society. Based on the obtained results, implications for further research are presented.

Predisposing Factors Connected with Willingness to Intervene in Cases of Intimate Partner Violence: A Study in the Chinese, Italian, and Ethiopian Context

AbstractThe focus of this study is bystanders’ behavior and their willingness to intervene in cases of intimate partner violence (IPV) in three different countries (China, Italy, and Ethiopia), considering individual and social factors (i.e., right-wing Authoritarianism, masculinity ideology, and gender). The Italian sample was made up of 192 participants (56% male). The Chinese sample was made up of 274 participants (66% female). The Ethiopian sample was made up of 161 participants (53.3% female). Participants completed the Male Role Norms Inventory–Short Form, the Right-wing Authoritarianism Scale, and the Willingness to intervene in cases of IPVAW. The Chinese model suggested how masculinity ideology is negatively associated with “reporting the incident to the authorities” factor, and positively with “not my business” factor. Right-wing authoritarianism is positively associated with “reporting the incident to the authorities” factor. The Italian model suggested how masculinity ideology was positively related to the “reporting the incident to the authorities” factor, and gender was negatively related to “not my business” factor, and positively related to “personal involvement” factor. The Ethiopian model suggested how masculinity ideology is positively associated with “personal involvement in the case” factor and gender is positively associated with the “reporting the incident to the authorities” factor. Masculine ideologies, authoritarian personality characteristics, and gender are predisposing factors toward bystander attitudes when confronted with cases of intimate partner violence. Our findings highlight key areas of focus to help raise awareness related to IPV cases, and policy aimed at promoting prosocial society.

Juror decision-making within domestic sex trafficking cases: do pre-trial attitudes, gender, culture and right-wing authoritarianism predict believability assessments?

Purpose This study aims to examine whether country of residence, sex trafficking attitudes, complainant gender, juror gender and right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) influenced juror decision-making within a sex trafficking case. Design/methodology/approach Jury-eligible participants from the USA and the UK participated in an online juror experiment in which an independent group design was used to manipulate the complainant’s gender. Participants completed the juror decision scale, the sex trafficking attitudes scale and the RWA scale. Findings Sex trafficking attitudes predicted the believability of both the defendant and complainant. Greater negative beliefs about victims predicted greater defendant believability and lower complainant believability. US jurors reported greater believability of both the complainant and defendant, and RWA was associated with greater defendant believability. However, none of the other factors, including complainant and juror gender, predicted participants’ verdicts. The findings suggest juror verdicts in sex trafficking cases may be less influenced by extra-legal factors, although further research is needed, especially with a more ambiguous case. Originality/value This is one of the few cross-cultural comparison studies in the area of jury decision-making, specifically regarding sex trafficking cases. The findings indicated that US participants held more problematic attitudes about sex trafficking than their UK counterparts, although all participants held problematic attitudes about sex trafficking. However, those attitudes did not affect verdict formation about either a male or female complainant. Participants who were more knowledgeable about sex trafficking reported greater complainant believability, suggesting that educational interventions may provide greater support for victims in court.

Short version of the right-wing authoritarianism scale for the Brazilian context

Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) is a central predictor of distinct phenomena such as prejudice, voting behavior, corruption, conspiratory beliefs and dietary habits. Given its theoretical and practical relevance, researchers have incorporated RWA measures in large-scale surveys but their length can be an impediment. Although short RWA scales exist, none consider the cultural variability of the RWA structure in non-WEIRD contexts such as Brazil. Here, we report data from five cross-sectional and longitudinal Brazilian samples (Ntotal = 2,493) used to develop a short RWA version that considers cross-cultural specificities of the Brazilian context, where an alternative four-factor model was observed. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed a four-factor structure comprising Authoritarianism, Traditionalism, Submission to Authority and Contestation to Authority dimensions. Six-month longitudinal results indicated that Authoritarianism and Traditionalism are more stable than both Submission and Contestation to Authority. Correlations between these dimensions and right-wing political self-categorization were statistically equivalent for the full 34-item RWA scale version and the new 12-item version. Results confirm the psychometric properties of the four-factor, 12-item RWA scale in this cultural context.

Investigating the Moderating Role of Positive Intergroup Contact on the Association between Authoritarianism and Homophobia among Heterosexual Young Adults

Authoritarian personality traits are associated with compliance and obedience to prevailing social norms and values. In contexts where the political climate fuels homophobia, people with authoritarian personality traits display more homophobic attitudes and behaviors. On the other hand, positive intergroup contact can reduce problems between groups. This positive intergroup contact, which emphasizes similarities by weakening baseless information about the outgroup, has long been used to reduce intergroup conflicts. In a heterosexual sample, whether positive intergroup contact will have a moderating role in the relationship between authoritarianism and homophobia is an open question. To answer this question, 241 young adults (Mage = 22.0, SD = 2.04; 59.3% female, 40.7% male) from 47 different cities of Türkiye were reached. Participants completed the right-wing authoritarianism scale, the social contact form with sexual minorities, and the Hudson & Ricketts homophobia scale. In parallel with the hypotheses, the findings show that authoritarian personality score positively predicted homophobia (β = .49, SE = .05, z = 10.07, p < .001), while positive intergroup contact negatively predicted homophobia (β = -.66, SE = .08, z = -8.67, p < .001). However, contrary to the hypothesis, no moderating role of positive intergroup contact in the association between authoritarianism and homophobia was observed (β = -.03, SE = .05, z = -.53 p = .593). Simple slope analyzes showed that authoritarianism positively predicted homophobia at both high and low levels of positive intergroup contact. The findings are discussed in the context of intergroup contact theory.

Relationships between Spirituality, Religious Fundamentalism and Environmentalism: The Mediating Role of Right-Wing Authoritarianism.

According to past research, religious attitudes can strongly influence individuals’ beliefs and behaviors. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationships between spirituality (the Scale of Spirituality; dimensions include religious spirituality, expanding consciousness, searching for meaning, sensitivity to art, doing good, and sensitivity to inner beauty), religious fundamentalism (the Religious Fundamentalism Scale), support for right-wing authoritarianism (the Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale), climate concerns (the Environmental Concern Scale), and pro-environmental behavior (the Pro-Environmental Behavior Scale). The cross-sectional study involved 512 Poles aged 18–63 (M = 34.63, SD = 5.96; Mdn = 33), including 51% females. Multiple regression analysis revealed that two dimensions of spirituality (sensitivity to art and doing good) and religious fundamentalism are significant and opposite predictors of climate concern and pro-environmental behavior. Spirituality appeared to foster increased climate concern and caring behavior, while religious fundamentalism negatively predicted the same variables. Mediation analysis revealed that the relationship between religion and environmentalism could be explained in part by differences in support for right-wing authoritarianism (authoritarianism itself was negatively related to environmental outcomes). In addition, analysis of variance revealed that believers (70% of participants in the study were Catholic) showed significantly lower scores regarding climate concerns and pro-environmental behavior than non-believers, yet the inclusion of support for right-wing authoritarianism as a covariate in the equation reduced intergroup differences to statistical insignificance. The data obtained suggest that religious attitudes and socio-political views may play important roles in solving environmental problems.

Correlations Among High School Students' Beliefs about Conspiracy, Authoritarianism, and Scientific Literacy

Studies consistently show the social impact of spreading epistemologically unfounded beliefs (or ‘conspiracy beliefs’), including negative effects on public health. The present study identified correlations among epistemologically unfounded beliefs, authoritarianism, and scientific literacy in a representative sample of 303 Slovak secondary school students, using the Epistemologically Unfounded Beliefs Scale, Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale, and Scientific Reasoning Scale. Statistical analysis confirmed significant correlations among the three variables. The findings suggest that increasing scientific literacy could simultaneously reduce authoritarianism and epistemologically unfounded beliefs in secondary school students.

Basic Human Values, Right-Wing Authoritarianism and Psychological Well-Being Among University Students

The present study aimed to measure the relationship between basic human values, right-wing authoritarianism and psychological well-being among university students. The Portrait Values Questionnaire (Schwartz, 2003), Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale (Altemeyer, 2006) and Ryff’s Psychological Well-Being Scale (Ryff & Keyes, 1995) were used to collect data. Sample comprised of 250 students including (men = 55, women = 195) from different universities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. The findings indicated that positive relationship existed between two orthogonal (openness to change vs. conservation & self-transcendence vs. self-enhancement) of basic values and psychological well-being and negative relationship was found between right-wing authoritarianism and two orthogonal dimensions (openness to change vs conservation & self-transcendence vs self-enhancement) of values. It was also observed that positive relationship exists between right-wing authoritarianism and psychological well-being. Nonsignificant gender differences were found on given study variables. The results of the given study can provide help in the educational sector for devising programs that can help inculcating certain values in the students in result enhancing their psychological well-being and general view of life.

Ideological Influences on Intergroup Attitudes in the Context of The Hague Court Boundary Dispute between Peru and Chile

In the context of the border dispute presented by Peru against Chile in the The Hague Court, this study analyzes the influences of two ideological motivational dimensions: Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) on a set of intergroup attitudes that involve both nations. To this end, a survey study of 196 Chileans and 223 Peruvians participants was conducted. The instruments used to measure ideology and political attitudes are the following ones: RWA Scale; SDO Scale; Scale of Intergroup attitudes between Chile-Peru and specific questions on interest in the Hague litigation and willingness to fight for one's country. The results show that in the Peruvian case attitudes of belligerence and alert and a greater willingness to fight for the country are better explained by the RWA, while in the Chilean case these same attitudes are explained both by the RWA as well as the SDO. On the other hand, pacificist attitudes are explained inversely by SDO in both countries. These findings support the hypothesis that intergroup dynamics between both countries have been marked by expressed actions of a Chilean expansionism versus a Peruvian vengefulness and suggest that equalitarianism will promote attitudes toward respect and cooperation between both groups, changing the frames of expansionism and vengefulness for one of a culture of peace.

Contextual and Psychological Predictors of Militant Extremist Mindset in Youth.

The present study aims to identify contextual and psychological factors of proneness to radicalization and violent extremism (RVE) operationalized through the Militant Extremist Mindset scale (MEM) consisting of three distinct aspects: Proviolence (PV), Vile World beliefs (VW), and trust in Divine Power (DP). A community sample of 271 high school students (72% females) from Belgrade and Sandžak regions in Serbia completed: (1) a 24-item MEM scale; (2) contextual measures including a 6-item scale of family dysfunction (FDys) and a 4-item composite measure capturing exposure to a harsh school environment and peer abuse (HSE); (3) psychological measures including the 9-item Right-Wing Authoritarianism scale (RWA), the 5-item Social Dominance Orientation scale (SDO), and the 20-item UCLA Loneliness scale (LON). A path analysis was conducted with contextual factors on the first and psychological factors on the second level of the model predicting the three factors of MEM. LON was positively predicted by FDys and HSE, SDO by HSE only, while RWA was positively predicted by FDys only. Contextual and psychological factors accounted for 27% of the variance in PV (LON, SDO), 15% of the variance in VW (FDys, SDO), and 31% of the variance in DP (RWA). Obtained findings reveal a complex interplay of contextual and psychological drivers in the prediction of different aspects of RVE and build upon existing knowledge on risk factors associated with RVE.

Авторитаризм и интолерантность к неопределенности у студентов педагогических вузов России

The work is aimed at studying the current level of authoritarianism and intolerance to uncertainty among students of pedagogical universities in Russia. The main purpose of the work is to study the relationship between right-wing authoritarianism and tolerance for uncertainty among students of pedagogical universities, while the main assumption of the study is the presence of this relationship, which varies depending on the year of study, specialization and geographical location. The article presents the materials of a correlation study obtained on a sample of students of twenty-one pedagogical universities in Russia. The study (N=870) involved respondents aged 16 to 34 years (M=19,92; SD=2,04), of which 90% were female. The study was conducted in an Internet format. The authors used the B. Altmeyer’s “Right-wing Authoritarianism Scale” in russian edition by N.A. Diakonova and the “New Questionnaire of tolerance-intolerance to Uncertainty” by T.V. Kornilova. The results demonstrate a significant increase in the level of authoritarianism from the first to the last year of study, and an average statistical correlation between authoritarianism and intolerance to uncertainty.

Relations between Right-Wing Authoritarianism, Social Dominance Orientation, Individualism-Collectivism and Political Identities

This study compares university students who have nationalist, conservative, social democrat and socialist political identities in terms of right-wing authoritarianism, social dominance orientation and individualism-collectivism values. The sample was composed of 125 students with “nationalist” identity, 102 students with “conservative” identity, 144 students with “social democrat” identity and 139 students with “socialist” identity. The right-wing authoritarianism scale (RWA), social dominance orientation scale (SDO) and individualism-collectivism scale (INDCOL) were used in this study. The results showed that the students with conservative political identity received higher scores in right-wing authoritarianism personality traits than students of other political identities. In a similar way, the students with nationalist identity also had higher levels of high RWA than those with social democrat or socialist identity. The low RWA scores received by the socialist identity group were found to be higher on comparing with other identity groups. The vertical individualism and vertical collectivist levels of students with nationalist identity were higher than those of identity groups. And finally, it was also found that the right-wing authoritarianism, vertical individualism and high RWA levels of students who attended numerical or science departments were higher than the levels of students who attended verbal departments. The findings obtained are discussed within the framework of previous studies and theoretical approaches.

Development of Japanese versions of the Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) scale

Development of Japanese versions of the Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) scale

The benefit of contact for prejudice-prone individuals: The type of stigmatized outgroup matters

ABSTRACTIntergroup contact reduces prejudice against a variety of social outgroups and seems to be particularly effective at reducing prejudice in individuals most prone to it—those high in right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and social dominance orientation (SDO). The present study examines the moderating roles of RWA and SDO in the contact-prejudice relationship, targeting dissident, dangerous, and derogated outgroups: lesbians and gay men, people with schizophrenia, and Indigenous Australians, respectively. In total, 234 participants self-reported contact and prejudice against these outgroups and completed RWA and SDO scales. Contact predicted less prejudice against lesbians and gay men and Indigenous Australians in participants high in RWA and participants high in SDO. However, contact only predicted less prejudice against people with schizophrenia in participants low in RWA or SDO. The results suggest that the ability for intergroup contact to reduce prejudice in prejudice-prone individuals may depend on the outgroup targeted, specifically the threat they pose and the level of prejudice held against them.

Sexualized Victims of Stranger Harassment and Victim Blaming: The Moderating Role of Right-Wing Authoritarianism

A growing body of research documents the adverse effects of sexualized appearance on people’s attitudes toward women victims of blatant forms of gender violence. However, the impact of sexualization of women victims of subtle forms of gender violence and the moderating role of people’s conservativism on victim blaming remain under-investigated. In the current study, we examined the effects of sexualization on blame attribution to victims of a stranger harassment incident, considering the moderating role of participants’ Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA). Two hundred and thirty-six participants (31.8% male; Mage = 30.52, SD = 12.70) completed an RWA scale and then read a fictitious Facebook’s post where the victim herself described the stranger harassment episode that happened down the street (vs. at a house party). The post was presented with a sexualized (vs. non-sexualized) portrayal of the victim. Finally, participants rated the severity of the episode and expressed to what extent they blamed the victim. As predicted, harassment at the house party (vs. down the street) was perceived as less severe, and sexualized (vs. non-sexualized) victims were blamed to a greater extent. Our major results revealed that people’s RWA synergizes with the victim’s sexualization in shaping blame attribution. People with an average and a high level of RWA tend to blame to a greater extent the sexualized victim of stranger harassment, while blame attributions did not change according to victim’s sexualization for people with a low level of RWA.

FUNDAMENTALISM AMONG ACEHNESE YOUTH: ACEHNESE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES ON RELIGIOUS FUNDAMENTALISM, RIGHT-WING AUTHORITARIANISM, AND MILITIA SENTIMENTS


 Purpose:This study aims to measure the attitude levels of Acehnese university students on religious fundamentalism, right-wing authoritarianism, and militia sentiments and determine whether there are strong correlations between these attitudes.
 Methodology:A modified Islamic and Indonesian version of the Revised Religious Fundamentalism Scale, the Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale, and the Militia Scale were employed in an online survey.The survey gathered 308 responses and 85 of them completed.
 Results:Acehnese Muslims display a 69.3%, 54% and 58% attitude level of religious fundamentalism, right-wing authoritarianism, and militia sentiments respectively, displayingattitudes significantly higher than Toronto Muslims, Hindus, Jews, United States and Canadian Christians, and Ghanaian Christians and Muslims. Religious fundamentalist attitudes correlated 72% with right-wing authoritarian attitudes and 62%with militia sentiments. Right-wing authoritarianism correlated 61% with militia sentiments.
 Implications:The findings of this study are useful in understanding the interlocking social relationships of religious fundamentalism, right-wing authoritarianism, and militia sentiments. Specifically, these findings indicate the challenges the Indonesian government still face in empowering democracy and restoring the central government’s legitimacy in Aceh.
 Originality:This study adapts well-known scales into a unique Indonesian and Islamic context, providing a unique perspective in the discussion of religious fundamentalism, right-wing authoritarianism, and militia sentiments. It elucidates the unique personality of Acehnese youth, whom have been under studied.

Authoritarianism, trauma, and insecure bonds during the Greek economic crisis

This correlational study investigated the link between authoritarian attitudes, psychosocial trauma, and attachment insecurity in the context of a significant community and personal threat – the recent economic crisis in Greece. The study utilised a large community sample and five self-report measures - Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale-S, Social Group Attachment Scale, Relationship Questionnaire, Perceived Cohesion Scale, and Impact of Events Scale-R. It was hypothesised that authoritarianism would be independently linked with insecurity in two types of bond (person-to-person and person-to-state) via the experience of post-traumatic stress and perceptions of social cohesion. Structural Equation Modelling indices suggested that the model had a very good fit.

Propiedades métricas de la Escala Salvadoreña de Autoritarismo de Derechas (RWA)

<p>El objetivo de este trabajo es exponer las propiedades métricas de la Escala Salvadoreña de Autoritarismo de Derechas (RWA), desarrollada por Orellana (2017). Se contó con una muestra de 421 habitantes del Área Metropolitana de San Salvador (AMSS) mayores de 15 años (M = 39.2; DE = 17.2). La escala es el producto de un proceso de depuración de preguntas adaptadas o incluidas en encuestas de opinión y de cultura política. De acuerdo con el coeficiente alfa de Cronbach, la escala presenta una consistencia interna total satisfactoria (? = .83). Un análisis factorial confirmatorio evidencia un modelo con un ajuste adecuado que reproduce la reconocida estructura factorial tridimensional del RWA de Altemeyer (1996; validez de constructo). La escala está correlacionada con constructos determinados (p. ej., dimensiones de cultura política, inseguridad ciudadana y disposiciones psicosociales como prejuicio) en concordancia teórica y empírica con la tradición de estudios sobre autoritarismo (validez de criterio-concurrente). Se discuten sus características y futuras vías de aplicación.</p>

Finding the Loch Ness Monster: Left‐Wing Authoritarianism in the United States

Although past research suggests authoritarianism may be a uniquely right‐wing phenomenon, the present two studies tested the hypothesis that authoritarianism exists in both right‐wing and left‐wing contexts in essentially equal degrees. Across two studies, university (n = 475) and Mechanical Turk (n = 298) participants completed either the RWA (right‐wing authoritarianism) scale or a newly developed (and parallel) LWA (left‐wing authoritarianism) scale. Participants further completed measurements of ideology and three domain‐specific scales: prejudice, dogmatism, and attitude strength. Findings from both studies lend support to an authoritarianism symmetry hypothesis: Significant positive correlations emerged between LWA and measurements of liberalism, prejudice, dogmatism, and attitude strength. These results largely paralleled those correlating RWA with identical conservative‐focused measurements, and an overall effect‐size measurement showed LWA was similarly related to those constructs (compared to RWA) in both Study 1 and Study 2. Taken together, these studies provide evidence that LWA may be a viable construct in ordinary U.S. samples.

The Aggression-Submission-Conventionalism Scale: Testing a new three factor measure of authoritarianism

Altemeyer’s (1981) Right-Wing Authoritarianism scale is the most popular authoritarianism measure today. However, the use of a unidimensional scale to measure a three factor construct and an apparent tautology between items and predictive criteria have garnered criticism. Revisions take one of two main approaches: either they simplify the construct to be unidimensional and create new items or they retain Altemeyer’s three factor theory and alter Altemeyer‘s original items to produce a three factor scale. We combine these two approaches by retaining Altemeyer’s three factor theory while creating new items. Our new measure, the Aggression-Submission-Conventionalism (ASC) scale, allows for a test of Altemeyer’s theory divorced of the original items. The ASC scale was designed to maximize discriminant validity while creating less tautological and more politically and religiously neutral items. A total of 649 participants in three convenience samples from the United States completed surveys showing the ASC scale to have good reliability and validity. The ASC scale was found to have similar predictive validity to other three factor scales but superior discriminant validity. Most importantly, we found a clear contribution of all three factors in predicting ethnocentrism, political intolerance, and anti-democratic attitudes. Authoritarian aggression emerged as the most important and consistent predictor with submission and conventionalism effects dependent upon the criterion. The ASC subscales all added unique variance above current unidimensional measures, with aggression consistently adding the most variance. Our findings support Altemeyer’s three factor theory and show that unidimensional measures fail to capture the nuances of our ASC scale.