Conservative legislators score higher on right-wing authoritarianism than liberals do

Evidence

Results. 1 received completed surveys from 9 (28%) of the Liberal lawmakers, and 8 (16%) of the Conservatives. The Liberal scores on the RWA Scale ranged from 73 to 154, and averaged 117.7.-The Tories went from 125 to 203, with a significantly higher mean of 170.9. The point-biserial correlation between party affiliation and authoritarianism was .69. The mean interitem correlation on the RWA Scale equaled .35, producing an alpha of .94. — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3381 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

The mean score of the responding Republicans was 178.2, while that of the Democrats was nearly forty points lower (140.3). Republicans scored higher on all the RWA Scale items; they registered much stronger belief in authoritarian submission and authoritarian aggression, as well as conventionalism. — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3706 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

The original authors recognized that high F scores were not necessarily associated with any particular political view and pointed out the existence of low scorers, supporters of “progressive” policies, who were as rigid and totalitarian as extreme high scorers (Adorno et al., 1950). This datum was among the subtle­ ties lost upon later critics and defenders of the work. — Leonard S. Newman and Ralph Erber (eds.), Understanding Genocide, 446 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Criminal populations scored highest on authoritarianism, not as rebels but as conservatives — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology: Key Readings, 514; Elected conservative lawmakers score far higher on authoritarianism than liberals. — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3381; US Republican legislators scored well above Democrats on authoritarianism — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3706 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• Elected conservative lawmakers score far higher on authoritarianism than liberals. #corroborates (0.97) — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3381
• US Republican legislators scored well above Democrats on authoritarianism #corroborates (0.94) — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 3706
• Left-wing progressives can score as authoritarian as right-wing extremists #complicates (0.76) — Leonard S. Newman and Ralph Erber (eds.), Understanding Genocide, 446