The Authoritarian Personality

What type of explanation is the authoritarian personality?

Dispositional

who investigated the concept of the authoritarian personality

Adorno et al.

what traits are involved in the authoritarian personality

• highly obedient to authority

• conventional views, B+W thinking

• hostile towards those of lower status

how does the authoritarian personality develop

harsh, strict parenting

severe criticism of failings

expectation of loyalty

conditional love

What is the F-scale

fascism scale

questionnaire developed by Adorno to measure authoritarian traits

includes statements measuring obedience, authority, prejudice

what does a high score on the F scale suggest

High score = higher likelihood of obedience to authority

Adorno’s investigation into the cause of obedient personality

studied 2000 white middle-class Americans and their unconscious attitudes to other racial groups

high score on F scale correlated to high levels of obedience/ respect for authority

Strength 1- supporting evidence

Point: Research provides support for the authoritarian personality explanation.

Evidence: Elms and Milgram found that obedient participants scored higher on Adorno's F-scale than disobedient participants.

Explain: Higher F-scale scores indicate stronger authoritarian traits, such as respect for authority and submission to those in power.

Link: This suggests that personality may influence whether a person obeys, supporting the idea that obedience can be partly explained by dispositional factors.

Counter to strength 1- correlational

Point: The evidence is correlational.

Evidence: Elms and Milgram found a relationship between authoritarian personality and obedience.

Explain: Correlational research cannot establish cause and effect, so we cannot be sure that authoritarian personality causes obedience. It may be that obedience leads to authoritarian attitudes, or that a third variable influences both.

Link: Therefore, the findings do not prove that authoritarian personality is the cause of obedience, making the explanation less convincing.

Weakness 1: social desirability

Point: The F-scale may be affected by social desirability bias.

Evidence: Participants may give answers they believe are socially acceptable rather than truthful.

Explain: This could lead to people being incorrectly identified as having authoritarian traits when they do not actually possess them.

Link: Therefore, the F-scale may not accurately measure authoritarian personality, meaning the evidence used to support the explanation may be inaccurate and less trustworthy.

Weakness 2- situational factors

Point: Situational factors may be more important than personality.

Evidence: Milgram found that factors such as proximity, location and uniform affected obedience levels.

Explain: If obedience changes depending on the situation, it cannot be explained solely by personality traits.

Link: This suggests situational explanations provide a better account of obedience than authoritarian personality alone.