RWA and SDO scales actually measure ideological attitudes rather than personality traits.

Evidence

The view that the RWA and SDO scales measure personality traits is consistent with Allport and Adorno et al.’s approaches; however, both RWA and SDO may be more accurately viewed as measuring social attitudes or ideological beliefs (Duckitt, 2001). The content of the RWA or F scales (e.g., “Obedience and respect for authority are the most important virtues children should learn”) and the SDO scale (“It’s OK if some groups have more of a chance in life than others”) do not pertain to personality traits and behavior, but to social attitudes and beliefs of a broadly ideological nature (cf. also Feldman & Stenner, 1997; Saucier, 2000). Indeed, Pratto et al. (1994) have usually described the SDO scale as a measure of enduring beliefs. — John F. Dovidio, Peter Glick, Laurie A. Rudman, On the Nature of Prejudice, 2463

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the long-running trait-versus-attitude debate in personality/social psychology, echoing similar measurement debates elsewhere in this volume. — connects to: The radicalization literature overwhelmingly measures attitudes and intentions rather than actual violent behavior. — Lea Echelmeyer, Anne-Marie Slotboom, and Frank Weerman, The Putative Effect of Identity on…, 50
• DEFINE: Clarifies the contested construct validity of RWA and SDO — what the scales genuinely measure.