Text 657, 336 rader
Skriven 2004-11-05 05:58:00 av Michael Ragland (1:278/230)
Ärende: Re: Is there a gene for s
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Here is a little bit of information on social dominance as it relates to
aggression and the authoritarian personality. I have encountered
authoritarian personality types (they exist in society at large) but
particularly in government. 
While I agree with Adorno's assessment I disagree the causes are
primarily environmental, parental or otherwise. As the article states,
"Adorno used Freudian psycho-dynamic theory to argue that the child is
forced to develop repression as a defence mechanism against the
parenting style that denies the child self expression and rational
discussion.The demand for good behaviour is excessive and
uncompromising.
There is intolerance of behaviour & things that are different." Adorno's
theories of authoritarian personality are quite dated but I think they
still apply. But back then there was not the discovery of DNA (at least
not in 1950) and the emphasis today is on biological factors involved in
human aggression. So its understandable why Adorno used Freud's
psycho-dynamic approach. 

My view is the authoritarian personality or RWA has a biological basis
to it which can be ameliorated or compounded by interaction with
biological factors. It states Characteristics of authoritarian
Personality: 

Pre-occupation with superiority & upmanship

Intolerance of less able people 

Often sees things as black or white (right or wrong)

Superficially respectful of authority figures (parental symbolism)

Antagonistic towards out-groups 
   
Authoritarian personality reflects the intolerance central to his/her
primary socialisation.

Strict adherence to received views & prevailing social trends.

Inability to deal with ambiguity or cognitive dissonance (uses
prejudices & stereotypes to create certainty)  

Focus on ethnocentrism

Intolerant of deviant groups such as homosexuals

Xenophobia    

Patterns of blind domination include:

Patterns of blind domination

(1) Domination of nature by human beings
(2) Domination of nature within human beings
(3) Domination of some humans by others 
The domination is motivated by intense fear of the unknown. The fear is
essentially irrational but is often made to look rational. 

So I disagree with Adorno's psychological or environmental causation for
these qualities of the authoritarian personality but I think what has
been described (at least in terms of phenotypical behavior) is accurate.
I've criticized sociobiology before because it hasn't scientifically
discovered the biological mechanisms involved in aggression.
Sociobiology is an animal behavioral science. But that doesn't mean I
don't believe there aren't biological mechanisms for aggression and
related areas which Adorno maps out in describing the authoritarian
personality. Unfortunately, they just haven't been found yet. And that
is just the first step. The next step is to use genetic engineering so
one day the authoritarian personality or RWA is an evolutionary thing of
the past.

Michael Ragland

Psychology & Racism (6PS006) 
 
Authoritarian Personality 
 
 Learning outcomes 
 
Be able to define & critically discuss the concept of authoritarian
personality.
Be able to critically discuss the research underpinning the
authoritarian personality
Be able to critically discuss the concept of Right Wing Authoritarianism
(RWA).
Be able to critically discuss the research underpinning the RWA 
  
What is Authoritarian Personality? 
The authoritarian personality or prejudiced person is one whose
personality renders her/him susceptible to racist or fascist ideologies
prevalent in society at a given time (Brown 1995 p19).

The authoritarian personality theory assumes the individuala's political
& social attitudes cohere together & are an expression of deep lying
trends in personality  
 
Why study authoritarian Personality? 
Social Psychologists have often argued for the link between prejudice &
personality traits. 
One's personality traits are thought to be precursors of prejudice,
intolerance and discrimination.

The Frustration-Aggression Hypothesis (Dollard & Miller 1939) implicates
personality traits with scapegoating & aggression towards outgroups.
Low self-esteem, insecurity & anxiety have been associated with
prejudice & discrimination (Augoustinos & Reynolds 2001)
  
Theodor Ludwig Weisengrund  (1903-1969) 
Born 11 September 1903 (Germany)
Studied philosophy, psychology & music
Expelled from his first university lectureship  because of his Jewish
heritage.
Left Germany 1934 (Nazi era) & briefly lived in Oxford, New York &
California
Adopted his mother's surname (Maria Calvelli-Adorno) during his exile in
the 1930's  
  
Adorno's Perception 

The dialectic of enlightenment: Adorno was puzzled by the enlightenment
as it attempted to advance knowledge & freedom of individuals while
simultaneously deliberately practising genocide & fascist ideology

Adorno & Horkheimer:Patterns of blind domination

(1) Domination of nature by human beings
(2) Domination of nature within human beings
(3) Domination of some humans by others 
The domination is motivated by intense fear of the unknown. The fear is
essentially irrational but is often made to look rational. 
  
The Frankfurt School 
Also known as The institute of social research.
Studied aspect of culture and society
The Frankfurt School was more an informal name
Key members: Max Horkheimer, Walter Benjamin, Herbert Marcuse  
Karl Marx influenced the ideas & research in the Frankfurt School (not
necessarily agreeing with Marx) 
http://www.emory.edu/ENGLISH/Bahri/Adorno.html (Excellent biography of
Adorno) 
  
Authoritarian Personality Theory 
Adorno (1950) suggested authoritarian personality was created by
authoritarian parenting style.

The authoritarian style creates aggression, frustration and hatred which
is then directed towards convenient scapegoats
Adorno also believed such personalities can not tolerate cognitive
dissonance or any lack of closure. It therefore follows these people
find it difficult to understand things and people different from their
own mental set 
  
Psychodynamic View 

Adorno used Freudian psycho-dynamic theory to argue that the child is
forced to develop repression as a defence mechanism against the
parenting style that denies the child self expression and rational
discussion. 
The demand for good behaviour is excessive and uncompromising.
There is intolerance of behaviour & things that are different.  
  
Characteristics of authoritarian Personality 
Pre-occupation with superiority & upmanship
Intolerance of less able people 
Often sees things as black or white (right or wrong)

Superficially respectful of authority figures (parental symbolism)
Antagonistic towards out-groups 
  
Characteristics (continued) 
Authoritarian personality reflects the intolerance central to his/her
primary socialisation.
Strict adherence to received views & prevailing social trends.
Inability to deal with ambiguity or cognitive dissonance (uses
prejudices & stereotypes to create certainty)  
  
Research Evidence 

Adorno developed the F-scale (pre-fascist tendencies) as a personality
inventory which measured the the central attributes of authoritarian
personality. 

The F-scale had 30 items covering such issues as obedience & respect for
authority, aggression towards deviant groups such as homosexuals, and
general ethnocentrism.
See F scale at_ http://www.anesi.com/fscale.htm
& the scale for political surveys:  
http://www.udel.edu/DRC/Aguirre/publications/ag04.pdf
  
Research Evidence 2 

Adorno et al reported positive correlation between authoritarian
personality & prejudice.
Several subsequent studies have reported similar correlations
(e.g.Rokeach reported correlation between cognitive rigidity (dogmatism)
& authoritarianism).
Other studies have shown correlation between authoritarianism &
xenophobia
  
Other Studies 

Some studies replicating Adorno et al's correlational work  found no
evidence to support Adorno,  and in some cases they found
contradictory results

Perlmutter (1956), is said to have found a positive correlation between
authoritarian personality and xenophilia.  
  
Methodological Issues 

Construct validity of the F-Scale
Adornoa's generalisation from non-probability sample
Selected interviews (from low & high  F-scores) were carried out to
establish links with early parental authoritarianism. 
Interviews created an an ex-post-facto study likely to be testing
memory rather than parental authoritarianism. 
  
Criticism of F scale 

Items used by Adorno fail to distinguish prejudice from personality
Several factor analyses failed to extract the 9 dimensions in the F
scale
Results tended to vary from sample to sample
Altemeyer (1981) critical of Adorno's work
  
The F Scale 

Perceiving creative & imaginative people as a threat 

Anti-intraception 

Rigid thinking & belief in mystical powers 

Superstition & stereotypy 

Rejection & intolerance of non-conventional people 

Authoritarian aggression 

Uncritical acceptance of authority & ingroup 
Authoritarian submission 

Support of authority & ingroup norms 

Conventionalism
 
  
The F Scale (continued) 

Emphasis on sexual goings-on 

Sex 

Suspicion of danger & wild forces operating in the world 

Projectivity 

Generalised hostility & intolerance of weak outgroups 

Destructiveness & Cynicism 

Identification with the leader & emphasis on leader follower
relationship 

Power & toughness
 
  
Merits of authoritarian personality 
Despite the methodological limitations Adorno created insight into
authoritarian personality
Characteristics of authoritarian personality confirmed by other
psychologists
Implication of personality traits (e.g. low self-esteem, insecurity, &
anxiety) in prejudice & discrimination. 
 
  
Right wing Authoritarianism (RWA) 
Altemeyer suggests the RWA has dimensions that co-vary within the
individual:
Authoritarian submission:- high degree of submission to legitimate
authority
Authoritarian aggression:- General aggressiveness as influenced by
social or political order of the day
Conventionalism:- High adherence to social conventions as influenced by
society or authority 
  
Characteristics of RWA 

Specific cognitive style such as:
Uncritical acceptance of authority

Fundamental attribution error

Excessive use of cognitive heuristics

Homophobia

Racial or ethnic prejudice

Being prone to systematic delusions
 
  
RWA (Continued) 

RWA is associated with social dominance orientation (SDO) (desire for
one's group to be superior and dominant over outgroups

RWA is associated with maintaining social distance with outgroups

RWA is influenced by situation or environment rather than just
personality  
  
Recommended reading 
Augoustinos, M. & Reynolds, K. (2001) Understanding prejudice, racism,
and social conflict. Sage: London - chapter 6. 
Brown, R. (1995) Prejudice. Blackwell: Oxford - chapter 2 
Adorno, T. (1950) The F-Scale - the final form:-
http://www.anesi.com/fscale.htm 
http://www.habermas.org/adorno01.htm 
See Research instruments at:
http://www.psychology.adelaide.edu.au/resources/testlibrary/PersNorm-Author.html


"Tiny green men might have been a better experiment."

Stephen Hawking
(paraphrasing from a "Universe in a Nutshell".
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