Most high authoritarians say archaeological disproof of Jesus would not affect their faith

Evidence

What effect would such a development have on High RWA Christians? Of the 60 in my sample, 10 would not answer the question. Of the remaining 50, only 7 said this evidence would definitely affect their faith. Some hedged, and 28 (most of those who answered) said this discovery would have no effect whatsoever on their beliefs. Basically, this reaction reminds me of how Highs responded when they got bad news about their self-esteem and possible bad news about their level of prejudice: “Batten down the hatches, and run away.” — Bob Altemeyer, The Authoritarian Specter, 1971

Categorization

• DEFINE: This concretely demonstrates the ‘compartmentalization’ thesis described earlier in the chapter — authoritarians shield belief from contrary evidence.