Citation

Shaffer BA, Hastings BM. Psychol. Rep. 2004; 95(1): 311-316.

Affiliation

Department of Psychology and Social Sciences, Mount Aloysius College, Cresson, PA 16630-1999, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

15460386

Abstract

This study investigated the associations among terrorist threat, right-wing authoritarianism, self-esteem, and their relations in support for democratic values. Students (n = 140) completed Altemeyer's Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale, Rosenberg's Self-esteem Scale, and the Democratic Values Scale. The participants also read an editorial regarding the events of 9/11/01 and completed two mortality-salience questions to induce a sense of threat. Results showed that self-esteem was a significant contributor to the prediction of scores on the Democratic Values Scale. Furthermore, the interaction between self-esteem and right-wing authoritarianism explained significant variance in the Democratic Values Scale scores. The results are interpreted in light of theories addressing authoritarianism and self-esteem.

Language: en