Authoritarian Personality: Understanding Dispositional Factors
The concept of authoritarian personality in psychology emerged as researchers sought to comprehend the psychological underpinnings of events like the Holocaust. Adorno et al. developed this theory to explain why some individuals are more prone to obey authority figures and harbor prejudiced attitudes.
Definition: An authoritarian personality is characterized by extreme submissiveness to authority figures, rigid thinking, and contempt for those perceived as inferior.
The researchers used the F-scale Fascismscale questionnaire to measure authoritarian traits in individuals. This scale included questions about obedience, respect for authority, and attitudes towards various social groups.
Example: A sample F-scale question might be: "Obedience and respect for authority are the most important values children should learn."
Adorno et al.'s study involved 2,000 middle-class white Americans, examining their unconscious attitudes towards racial groups. The findings revealed a strong positive correlation between authoritarianism and prejudice.
Highlight: Individuals with authoritarian personalities tend to have fixed stereotypes about other groups and struggle with ambiguity or "grey areas" in their thinking.