The role of authoritarianism, perceived threat, and need for closure or structure in predicting post-9/11 attitudes and beliefs.
The authors examined relationships among authoritarianism, personal need for closure or structure, perceived threat, and post-9/11 attitudes and beliefs. Participants were 159 undergraduate students in the Southeastern United States. The authors collected data 1 week before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003. Correlation and regression analyses revealed that right-wing authoritarianism and social dominance orientation were significant predictors of support for restricting human rights during the U.S.-led War on Terror, support for U.S. President George W. Bush, and support for U.S. military involvement in Iraq. Right-wing authoritarianism and perceived threat emerged as the strongest predictors of the belief that Saddam Hussein supported terrorism.
Crowson
H Michael
HM
Department of Educational Psychology, The University of Oklahoma, 820 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK 73019-2041, USA. mcrowson@ou.edu
Debacker
Teresa K
TK
Thoma
Stephen J
SJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001290:Attitude; D001318:Authoritarianism; D003469:Culture; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D047851:September 11 Terrorist Attacks; D012930:Social Dominance; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires