The Authoritarian Specter Hardcover - 1996

From the rear cover

The bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City, the emergence of militias and skinheads, attacks on Planned Parenthood clinics, the backlash against equal rights movements - these, according to Bob Altemeyer, are all versions of one story: the authoritarian personality in action. But Nazi types, militias, and the Klan are just extreme examples of authoritarians, he argues. The Authoritarian Specter shows that many ordinary people today are highly susceptible to hate literature and are psychologically disposed to embrace antidemocratic, fascist policies. Many of our biggest problems, seemingly unrelated, are found to have common authoritarian roots. Based on results from a prize-winning research program, this book gives insight into how authoritarian minds are created and how they operate, and how their failings and vulnerabilities produce submission and aggression. A search for authoritarians on the left finds very few. Instead, studies reveal a strong concentration of authoritarians among religious fundamentalists and conservative politicians. These and many other powerful findings explain a persistent sentiment in our democracy to submit to "a man on horseback", to attack those who are different, to march in lock-step. This compelling, timely work advances our scientific understanding of authoritarianism on many fronts and deserves a wide readership.