The Presence of Left-Wing Authoritarianism in Western Europe and Its Relationship with Conservative Ideology

The presence of left-wing authoritarianism (LWA) as well as its relationship with right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) and conservative ideology was tested in three Flemish samples. In the first study conducted on a sample of ordinary voters ( N =  208), a newly developed LWA scale was found to be internally consistent and to show high construct validity. In the second study, another voter sample ( N =  264) and a sample of political activists ( N =  69) were tested. In the two samples of ordinary voters, only a few people obtained high LWA scores. Moreover, the aggression and submission items did not load on distinct components and LWA was positively related to RWA and cultural conservatism and negatively to economic conservatism. Conversely, in the political activist sample high LWA scores were common among left-wing extremists and evidence was found for a two-dimensional LWA aggression-submission structure. LWA was negatively related to RWA, cultural conservatism, and economic conservatism. The concept of LWA and its theoretical underpinnings are discussed.     

Dogmatism in relation to sub-types of conservatism: Some Australian data

An examination of the relation between authoritarianism and conservatism is made using newly developed balanced forms of the ‘D’ and ‘F’ scales together with scales to measure political, social, moral and economic conservatism. Neither ‘BD’ nor ‘BF’ scales predicted voting preference. The ‘BD’ scale was significantly, positively related to the political, social and moral conservatism scales but was non-significantly, negatively related to economic conservatism. It was concluded that both the ‘BD’ and ‘BF’ scales are equally good measures of general authoritarianism among supporters of Australian political parties and that while it is in general true that dogmatic people tend to be ideologically conservative, an exception must be made for economic conservatism. This exception is seen to be inferable from the theory of ‘working class authoritarianism’ advanced by Lipset (1960).     

Conservatism,Openness, and Creativity: Patents Granted to Residents of American States

This study was conducted to determine the relation of creative production to conservatism and openness to experience with American states as the units of analysis. Patents per state population from 2001 to 2005 served as the criterion. Conservatism was gauged by a composite based on (a) state-aggregated conservative self-placement among over 141,000 respondents to 122 national telephone surveys between 1976 and 1988 and (b) state percentage voting for Bush in 2004. State openness scores were based on state-aggregated survey responses of over 600,000 residents to a common Big Five personality questionnaire. For 46 states (excluding Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, and Idaho because of lack of suitable data), patents per state population was negatively related to conservatism (r = ? .65) and positively related to openness (r = .50). These associations persisted when state socioeconomic status (SES), estimates of IQ, and degree of urbanization were statistically considered. Multiple regression analysis showed that conservatism and openness together accounted for 46.5% of the criterion variance without controls and 22.7% with SES controlled. Variance in state creative production accounted for by conservatism and openness indicated that the 2 predictors had both overlapping and separate components but that conservatism was the predominant of the 2 dispositional variables.     

Test of the validity of the Wilson-Patterson Conservatism Scale.

The conservatism construct has previously proved predictive of social and psychological dimensions having both practical and theoretical relavance. Its potential, however, has typically been limited by measurement imprecision due principally to the use of lengthy and potentially ambiguous verbal statements subject to either intentional or unintentional response bias. Wilson and Patterson's recently developed Conservatism Scale (C-scale) is intended to obviate the more critical sources of bias inherent in the traditional conservatism measures. In an extended test of the C-scale's validity, the present study finds 12 categories of "known groups" scoring as theoretically expected, and further shows C-scale scores consistently and significantly correlated with eight theoretically related dimensions.     

Relationships between core ideological motives,social and economic conservatism,and religiosity: Evidence from a Turkish sample

The “conservatism as motivated social cognition” approach posits two core ideological motives underlying political conservatism across cultures. However, there is a scarcity of tests from non‐Western cultures, and much research has failed to distinguish between social and economic conservatism. Using a relatively large undergraduate sample from a non‐Western, predominantly Muslim country (Turkey), we tested the associations among resistance to change and opposition to equality motives, social and economic conservatism, right‐wing political orientation, and religiosity. In line with the “conservatism as motivated social cognition” account, we found that (a) social conservatism is more strongly related to resistance to change (rather than opposition to equality), (b) economic conservatism is more strongly related to opposition to equality (rather than resistance to change), (c) social conservatism is the strongest predictor of right‐wing political orientation among other conservatism measures, and (d) political orientation and religiosity had divergent effects: While right‐wing political orientation was related to economic conservatism, religiosity was inversely related to the latter, providing support for previous work indicating a resemblance between leftists and Islamists in Turkey. The results generally support the motivated social cognition approach to conservatism while also highlighting the importance of distinguishing between social and economic conservatism.     

Conservatism and Perceptions of Poverty: An Attributional Analysis1

Attribution theory was used to relate causal explanations for poverty to affect and behavioral intentions. In Experiment 1, student subjects rated 13 causes of poverty on importance, the attribution of controllability, blame, affects of pity and anger, and judgments of help-giving (personal help and welfare). Two individual differences, conservatism and the belief in a just world, were also assessed. A principal components analysis categorized the causes into three types: individualistic, societal, and fatalistic. Conservatism correlated positively with a belief in the importance of individualistic causes, controllability, blame, and anger, and it correlated negatively with perceptions of the importance of societal causes, pity, and intentions to help. No systematic effects of the belief in a just world emerged. A structural equation analysis revealed that personal help is emotionally determined, whereas welfare judgments are directly related to attributions of responsibility and political ideology. Experiment 2 revealed a similar pattern of results using a nonstudent sample.     

Family resemblances in conservatism: Are daughters more similar to parents than sons are?1

Family resemblances in conservatism were examined for a sample of 176 families tested in metropolitan Adelaide in 1972. Each family member's score on the Wilson and Patterson Conservatism Scale was compared with the scores of other members of his or her family. Using this within-family analysis it was found, as predicted, that there were family resemblances in conservatism and that sons were less similar to their parents in conservatism than were daughters. There was no evidence to support same-sex modeling. Results also suggested that the similarity of daughters to fathers was reduced in lower SES families. Parents were more conservative than their children and females were more conservative than males. Results were discussed in relation to developmental influences and to the literature on sex differences.     

Phenomenal conservatism, classical foundationalism, and internalist justification

In “Compassionate Phenomenal Conservatism” (2007), “Phenomenal Conservatism and the Internalist Intuition” (2006), and Skepticism and the Veil of Perception (2001), Michael Huemer endorses the principle of phenomenal conservatism, according to which appearances or seemings constitute a fundamental source of (defeasible) justification for belief. He claims that those who deny phenomenal conservatism, including classical foundationalists, are in a self-defeating position, for their views cannot be both true and justified; that classical foundationalists have difficulty accommodating false introspective beliefs; and that phenomenal conservatism is most faithful to the central internalist intuition. I argue that Huemer’s self-defeat argument fails, that classical foundationalism is able to accommodate fallible introspective beliefs, and that classical foundationalism has no difficulty accommodating a relatively clear internalist intuition. I also show that the motivation for phenomenal conservatism is less than clear.     

Cognitive functioning and socio-political ideology A multidimensional and individualized analysis

Abstract.— Relationships between certain cognitive behaviors within a political domain (i.e. Cognitive Differentiation, Cognitive Articulation) and certain dimensions of Socio-Political ideology (General Conservatism, Political-Economic Conservatism, Racism, Religion, Sexual Repression, and Authoritarian Aggression) were studied. Cognitive functioning was sampled via the use of uni- and multidimensional scaling analyses, with the stimuli consisting of Swedish political parties. Socio-Political ideology was defined by: (1) the S, Conservatism Scale and (2) the subjects' political party preferences. The subjects consisted of 105 psychology students from the University of Stockholm. The results showed that: ( a ) there were statistically significant relationships among the various indices of cognitive functioning based upon independent methods of assessment, and ( b ) there were statistically significant relationships between a number of cognitive functioning indices and certain dimensions of Socio-Political ideology. The results are discussed in terms of three hypotheses concerning the connection between Socio-Political ideology and certain forms of cognitive behavior.     

What's in a grade? Academic success and political orientation

Expanding the literature on person-environment fit, the authors argue that political orientation is an important factor in shaping academic success in college. Based on social dominance theory, it was expected that academic disciplines that are more likely to provide students with future access to social and economic power tend to favor individuals who hold attitudes that strengthen the existing societal order. In a longitudinal sample of undergraduate students at a major American university (n=3,890), the authors demonstrated that student grades in these disciplines, but not in other disciplines, are positively related to a precollege measure of conservatism. This association between conservatism is consistent over time and subgroups, thus implicating higher education in the reproduction of social hierarchy. The discussion examines the causal processes underlying the relationship between political orientation and academic success in college.     

Conservative Ideology,Economic Conservatism,and Causal Attributions for Poverty and Wealth

The purpose of the study is to analyze the effects of different features of Conservative Ideology, measured via the Social Dominance Orientation (SDO), Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Economic Conservatism (EC) scales, on Internal and External casual attributions for poverty and wealth. Participants were a group of 181 university students. Results of multiple regression analyses suggested that EC influenced Internal causal attributions for poverty and wealth positively but influenced the External ones negatively. Of the other measures, only SDO showed a negative effect on External causal attributions. Theoretical and practical implications of results are discussed.     

Extending the the behavioral immune system to political psychology: Are political conservatism and disgust sensitivity really related?

Previous research suggests that several individual and cultural level attitudes, cognitions, and societal structures may have evolved to mitigate the pathogen threats posed by intergroup interactions. It has been suggested that these anti-pathogen defenses are at the root of conservative political ideology. Here, we test a hypothesis that political conservatism functions as a pathogen-avoidance strategy. Across three studies, we consistently find no relationship between sensitivity to pathogen disgust and multiple measures of political conservatism. These results are contrasted with theoretical perspectives suggesting a relationship between conservatism and pathogen avoidance, and with previous findings of a relationship between conservatism and disgust sensitivity.     

The Role of Attitudes Toward White Privilege and Religious Beliefs in Predicting Social Justice Interest and Commitment

The current study examines links among attitudes toward White privilege, religious beliefs, and social justice interest and commitment for White Christian students. Two distinct patterns of results emerged from a path analysis of 500 White Christian students. First, a willingness to confront White privilege was positively associated with the sanctification of social justice (i.e., attributing spiritual significance to working for social justice) and both were positively associated with social justice interest and commitment. Second, awareness of White privilege was negatively associated with religious conservatism, and religious conservatism was negatively associated with social justice interest. These patterns show that White privilege attitudes directly (i.e., willingness to confront White privilege) and indirectly (i.e., awareness of White privilege through religious conservatism) predicted social justice interest and commitment. Moreover, religious beliefs demonstrated opposite patterns of association with social justice interest and commitment such that the sanctification of social justice positively predicted social justice interest and commitment whereas religious conservatism negatively predicted social justice interest. Overall, findings demonstrate direct and indirect links between White privilege attitudes, religious beliefs, and social justice interest and commitment. Limitations and implications for future community psychology research and collaboration also are discussed.     

Conservatism. A defence

Conservatism has an essence, or so I argue. Typical of the conservative attitude is to take what is an established fact or order to be worthy of preservation, precisely because it is well established. The question what fact is established must be answered in a context, and people of different political bent answer it differently. This is why we have left‐wing as well as right‐wing conservatism, sharing a common rationale. In my Conservatism for Our Time I discuss various different aspects of this rationale, and my answer to certain strictures raised by Robert Grant concerns several of them. The most important concerns a conservative or traditionalist criticism of rationalism. This criticism has been developed by ‐ among others ‐Michael Oakeshott. In my book, and in my answer to Grant, I defend and elaborate on this criticism.     

The importance of religiosity and values in predicting political attitudes: Evidence for the continuing importance of religiosity in Flanders (Belgium)

It has often been argued that religions influence political attitudes only indirectly by their influence on the value system of believers. This value system, in turn, is supposed to be used as a guideline in forming political attitudes. Thus, in this view, it should be sufficient to focus on value orientations if one wants to examine religion's influence on political attitudes. However, results of this study among first year psychology students (n=389), show that although value orientations hold greater predictive strength than religiosity towards political attitudes in Flanders (Belgium), religiosity, even apart from values, does provide additional information in predicting political attitudes. Thus, our results suggest that, at least in Flanders, religion, even apart from values, is still a politically important force. The most important value types, as measured by the Schwartz' Value Inventory (Schwartz, 1992), and religiosity dimensions, as measured by the Post-Critical Belief scale (Desimpelaere et al., 1999), associated with political attitudes were identified. Results show that each political attitude included in this study (economic conservatism, cultural conservatism, racism and nationalism) is predicted by a more or less unique pattern of religiosity dimensions and value orientations.     

Psychometric properties of a scale measuring negative attitudes toward overweight individuals.

This study examined the psychometric properties of the Anti-fat Attitudes Scale (AFAS), a 5-item instrument developed by the authors to measure negative attitudes toward overweight individuals. A total of 4 studies were conducted among Canadian adolescents (n = 1,452) and university students (n = 424). Results suggested that the AFAS possessed a unidimensional factor structure and satisfactory reliability for both men and women. As predicted, men obtained higher scores than women on the AFAS, and antifat attitudes were positively associated with authoritarianism, homonegativity, and political conservatism. Participants who were overweight had lower scores on the AFAS than participants who were thin or average weight. Responses on the AFAS did not appear to be contaminated by social desirability bias.     

Does Openness to Experience predict changes in conservatism? A nine-wave longitudinal investigation into the personality roots to ideology

Although Openness to Experience correlates negatively with conservatism, recent studies question the assumption that personality precedes political attitudes. We contribute to this debate by using nine annual waves of a nation-wide longitudinal panel study (N = 17,207) to investigate the temporal ordering of Openness to Experience and conservatism. Although cross-lagged panel models suggest that Openness to Experience predicts decreases in conservatism, analyses that properly separate between-person stability from within-person change find no evidence to suggest that personality precedes ideology (or vice-versa). These findings raise concerns about a critical assumption in the literature and suggest that personality and political ideology develop in parallel with one another, rather than personality causally preceding conservatism.     

Religiosity and conservatism revisited: relating a new religiosity measure to the two main conservative political ideologies

The relation between the two religiosity dimensions which Wulff (1997) described (Exclusion vs Inclusion of Transcendence and Literal vs Symbolic) and two conservative political ideologies (Cultural and Economic Conservatism) was investigated in a sample of 714 students, a heterogeneous sample of 262 adults, and a sample of 301 religiously affiliated adults gathered in Flanders (Belgium). Both Exclusion vs Inclusion of Transcendence and Literal vs Symbolic were expected to relate only to Cultural Conservatism. Analysis supported these hypotheses, providing further evidence for the close association between religiosity and Cultural Conservatism and the validity of the Post-Critical Belief scale as a measure of Wulff's dimensions of religiosity.     

Sentencing goals, causal attributions, ideology, and personality

Disparity in sentencing of criminals has been related to a variety of individual difference variables. We propose a framework establishing resonances or coherent patterns among sentencing goals, causal attributions, ideology, and personality. Two studies are described, one with law and criminology students, the other with probation officers. Relations among the different types of variables reveal two resonances among both students and officers. One comprises various conservative and moralistic elements: a tough, punitive stance toward crime; belief in individual causality for crime; high scores on authoritarianism, dogmatism, and internal locus of control; lower moral stage; and political conservatism. The second comprises various liberal elements: rehabilitation, belief in economic and other external determinants of crime, higher moral stage, and belief in the powers and responsibilities of government to correct social problems. Implications of these results are discussed for individual differences in sentencing, attribution theory, and attempts to reduce disparity.     

Human values: Genetic and environmental effects on five lexically derived domains and their facets

Whereas a substantial genetic component of Conservatism and Religiosity is well documented, there is little evidence with respect to the behavior genetics of other aspects of human values. A sample of 157 monozygotic and 74 dizygotic twins reared together received the Austrian Value Questionnaire (AVQ), which measures a broad variety of value domains and their facets, found by the lexical approach in the German language. Family resemblance of Intellectualism, Harmony, Materialism, and Conservatism was best explained by additive or dominance genetic and non-shared environmental effects, whereas the influence of the environment shared by twins was negligible. In contrast, Religiosity was transmitted by additive genetic, shared and non-shared environmental influences. At the level of facets, the Intellectualism and Harmony showed a homogenous etiology while Religiosity, Materialism, and Conservatism were etiologically heterogeneous.