Theodor W. Adorno
The Authoritarian Personality is a 1950 sociology book by Theodor W. Adorno, Else Frenkel-Brunswik, Daniel Levinson, and Nevitt Sanford. It is a sociology book that was the product of a study of prejudices by researches at the University of California, Berkley. The lead author Theodor W. Adorno, pictured above, was a leading member of the Frankfurt School of critical theory and social sciences who fled to the United States amid the rise of Nazi Germany. The impetus of the book was the Holocaust and the rise of Hitler and his authoritarian regime. Adorno and his colleagues desired to identify and measure factors that were believed to contribute to a pro-fascist persona. The book was heavily influenced by studies done in Germany that were modified.
A central idea of The Authoritarian Personality is that authoritarianism is the result of a Freudian developmental model. Excessively harsh and punitive parenting was posited to cause children to feel immense anger towards their parents; yet fear of parental disapproval or punishment caused people to not directly confront their parents, but rather to identify with and idolize authority figures. Moreover, the book suggested that authoritarianism was rooted in suppressed homosexuality, which was redirected into outward hostility towards the father, which was, in turn, suppressed for fear of being infantilized and castrated by the father. This hypothesis was consistent with prevailing psychological theories of the time, and Frenkel-Brunswik reported some preliminary support, but empirical data have generally not confirmed this prediction. Authoritarianism was measured by the F-scale. The "F" was short for "pre-fascist personality." Another major hypothesis of the book is that the authoritarian syndrome is predisposed to right-wing ideology and therefore receptive to fascist governments.
The book itself has been heavily criticized as being left-wing biased, critics arguing that Adorno was in fact a Marxist as were his colleagues. Sociologist J.J. Ray stated that the book was seriously flawed on several points; for not asking questions regarding libertarian politics, for failing to demonstrate that right-wing beliefs are correlated with psychopathology, and for failing to demonstrate that authoritarian beliefs are associated with authoritarian behavior (according to J.J. Ray). Some observers have criticized what they saw as a strongly politicized agenda. Social critic Christopher Lasch argued that by equating mental health with left-wing politics and associating right-wing politics with an invented "authoritarian" pathology, the book's goal was to "subject the American people to what amounted to collective psychotherapy by treating them as inmates of an insane asylum". Conservatives in general regard the book as preachy and elitist, and resentfully argue against it's alleged premise of associating right-wing politics with "mental illness and twisted upbringings". The scientific research/studies applied to the book itself have been called flawed and biased.
Despite criticisms of the book it has been heavily influential in the development of the social sciences. Adorno's F-scale test is even today utilized in sociological studies and is based upon a number of principles given by Adorno;
-Blind allegiance to conventional beliefs about right and wrong.
-Respect for submission to acknowledged authority.
-Belief in aggression toward those who do not subscribe to conventional thinking, or who are different.
-A negative view of people in general - i.e. the belief that people would all lie, cheat or steal if given the opportunity.
-A need for strong leadership which displays uncompromising power.
-A belief in simple answers and polemics - i.e. The media controls us all or The source of all our problems is the loss of morals these days.
-Resistance to creative, dangerous ideas. A black and white worldview.
-A tendency to project one's own feelings of inadequacy, rage and fear onto a scapegoated group.
-A preoccupation with violence and sex.
These, Adorno states, are the raw base(s) of a pro-fascist authoritarian persona.
Below I have provided several links. Various sources as well as a link to a modern F-scale test. Feel free to browse, drop input and opinions, and share your test results!
SOURCES
- The Authoritarian Personality (Psychologist World)
- Theodor W. Adorno (Wikipedia)
- The F-Scale Test (Wikipedia)
- The F-scale Test (Psychology Wiki)
- An Analysis of Trump Supporters Has Identified 5 Key Traits (Psychology Today) (I just had to include this one.)
I have other sources I may share later.
Here is a link to The Authoritarian Personality itself if your interested.
F-scale Test Version A
F-scale Test Version B
