Social Influence: Dispositional Factors Flashcards
what’s the authoritarian personality?
a type of personality that Adorno argued was espically susceptible to obeying people in authority. such individuals are thought to be submissive to those of higher status and dismissive of inferiors.
what was the procedure of Adorno’s study?
he investigated the causes of an obedient personality in a study with more than 2000 middle-class, white americans and their unconscious attitudes towards other racial groups. they developed several scales to investigate this including a potential fascism scale (F-scale) which is used to measure authoritarian personality
what were the findings of Adorno’s study?
people with authoritarian leanings identified strongly with ‘strong’ people and were contemptuous of the weak. they were conscious of their own and others status showing excessive respect to those of higher status. they also had a cognitive style of black and white thinking. a strong positive correlation between authoritarianism and prejudice.
what are the characteristics of an authoritarian personality?
they’re obedient to authority figures with extreme respect. they have conventional attitudes towards gender and race. they believe we need a powerful leader to enforce traditional values.
what is the origin of the authoritarian personality?
it formed in childhood as a result of harsh parenting with strict discipline, an expectation of loyalty and severe criticism. these experiences create resentment and hostility and as the child can’t express these feeling, they displace their feelings onto weaker others.
what’s the research support for the authoritarian personality? (A03)
Milgram + Elms conducted interviews with a small sample of obedient people who scored highly on the F-scale. the link between obedience and authoritarian personality is a correlation, meaning a potential 3rd factor is involved. Hyman + Sheatsley believe obedience and authoritarian personality are associated with low levels of education.
how is the authoritarian personality a limited explanation? (A03)
any explanation is hard to explain obedient behaviour of the population. in pre-war Germany, millions displayed obedient, racist and anti-semitic behaviour, despite the factor their personalities differ in numerous ways. it’s unlikely they all possess this personality type. there’s an alternative explanation, which is social identity as the majority of Germans identify with the anti-semitic Nazi state and scapegoated the Jews.
what’s the political bias of the authoritarian personality?
the F-scale measures extreme form of right-wing ideology. Christie + Jahoda argued this a politically bias intepretation as there is also left-wing authoritarianism such as Russian Bolshevism. extreme right and left wing have much in common as they both emphasise the importance of obedience. this is a limitation as it’s not comprehensive dispositional explanation that accounts for obedience across the politcal spectrum.
