@article{Aho, author = {Aho, James}, title = {Revisiting Authoritarianism}, series = {Critical Sociology, Vol. 46, No. 3 (2020), pp. 329-341. [Online ISSN 1569-1632] [doi.org/10.1177/0896920519830749]}, journal = {Critical Sociology, Vol. 46, No. 3 (2020), pp. 329-341. [Online ISSN 1569-1632] [doi.org/10.1177/0896920519830749]}, abstract = {This article traces the roots of the Authoritarian Personality (AP) project in the neo-Freudian/phenomenological tradition of the Frankfurt School (FS). It focuses on three of its major proponents (Erich Fromm, Theodor Adorno and Herbert Marcuse) and examines the construction of the F-scale. It outlines how, according to FS-influenced scholars, the AP arose from the disciplinary measures inflicted on late 19th and early 20th century German middle-class youth, and details the sado-masochistic political style of the prototypical AP. It covers the critical reception of this characterization and explanation of authoritarianism by Bob Altemeyer and Anglo-American positivism. It concludes by arguing that in overlooking the inner life of the AP, positivism blinds us to compelling truths, about authoritarianism, and also about ourselves.}, language = {en} }