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Reviews
Ray, Morgan Utah—
This
turned out to be one of my
favorite Audible books so far
along with The Drunkards Walk.
How Randomness Rules our Lives.
I think it's actually an
important book that's been
flying below the radar because
it wasn't commercially
published. At least not at
first, it may be now. Liberals,
moderates, and conservatives
alike, really need to read it.
When you've finished you'll
better understand not just Nazi
Germany, but the IRA in Ireland,
the Cultural Revolution under
Mao, the war in Yugoslavia under
Karadzic and even Pat Robertson.
Explaining Pat Robertson is no
small accomplishment but the
authors index is the best
explanation yet of radical
Muslims as well. Have you ever
wondered why there seems to be
an endless supply of people
willing to blow themselves up?
Well that's because there is an
endless supply and this book
explains why that is. It all
revolves around a way of
thinking called the RWA index.
RWA stands for Right Wing
Authoritarian. An unfortunate
title since it doesn't help his
credibility with conservatives
and conservatives need to read
this as much as anyone. He chose
this title I assume because in
the US and Canada these people
tend to gravitate to the
political right more than the
left but they're found on the
left as well. A better title
might have been the Muddle
Headed Followers index. The
index itself is politically
neutral. Everyone knows a few of
these of people. They're the
ones in the office who don't
reason from fact to opinion.
Instead, they choose an opinion
that fits the way they want the
world to be, then select facts
that support them. I personally
know so many of these people
I've begun to think that
reasoning from fact to opinion
must be something rare and
difficult and maybe should be
taught as a mandatory part of a
civics class. It doesn't seem to
come naturally in my area. But
then look at where I'm from.
Mary B. Weathers—
I
am on my second
"listen" of this book through
Audible. As a psychologist
myself, I want data to go with
opinions. This book has data in
spades. This is his first
popular book on the topic of
authoritarianism, following
research that goes back four
decades in the US and Canada, as
well as collaboration with
research in Russia. It explains
in clear language, how the right
wing authoritarian followers
think, how they act, and how
they are so gullible to being
led by social dominators. While
he does make political
statements, these statements are
backed up by a wealth of
research. Any progressive who
reads this and has watched what
has happened to the US, will
understand why we are so
exasperated with seemingly
intelligent people who seem so
illogical, irrational,
hypocritical, and dogmatic. They
are often of fundamental
religious persuasion. These
people will follow their
socially dominant leaders
aggressive and sometimes violent
acts without question. The
socially dominant leaders whom
they follow are truly
frightening as they often
masquerade as "one of them", but
are actually without conscience
and totally consumed by hunger
for power. I would call this,
for me, as enlightening as any
book I have read in a decade.
Emil, Denmark—
A
must read for everyone.
While Bob Altemeyer's personal
political stance is occasionally
discernable from his analysis of
data, and his investigation of
the subject is quite
America-centric, Altemeyer
provides us with a paradigm of
surprising explanatory and even
predictive power.
If you are interested in
politics or psychology, I highly
recommend this book. If you wind
up taking offense at its
presentation of scientific data,
perhaps you need this book more
than anyone. Authoritarianism is
a potential danger to all of us,
even on the individual level,
and if you find you dislike
hearing about it, it's a sure
sign you need to listen more
closely.
James Jensen—
There are a number of people who
will be offended by this book
and dismiss it as a propaganda -
most without even reading it.
That is precisely what Bob
Altemeyer's work predicts.
In this book, Altemeyer presents
his lifetime of research into
what is known as Right-Wing
Authoritarianism (RWA). If that
terms does not scare you off
immediately, you'll find in this
book that (1) it isn't as
politically-charged as it sounds
(Stalinists were high-RWA
left-wingers), and that (2) the
evidence for this personality
disorder is overwhelming.
Simply put, the modern
right-wing has become the
political home for nearly all of
the more than one-quarter of the
population who support
established traditions zealously
and uncritically. This has given
an audience to the corrupt
politicians of the "New Right"
who can be sure of support
simply through saying what their
followers want to hear.
Perhaps most shocking is that
the percentage of the population
who score highly on the RWA
scale is only a few points short
of the percentage which still
support the Iraq war and who
continued to support Nixon
during Watergate.
Altemeyer concludes that, due to
the very nature of right-wing
authoritarianism, there is
simply no easy solution. The
best approach is to offer a hand
of friendship, to offer to work
together on shared goals in
hopes of broadening the
authoritarians' perspective.
The Authoritarians is a
must-read book for liberals,
moderates, and conservatives
alike who are troubled by the
extremism and corruption of
modern neoconservatives.
Paul
Sunstone—
Last week, Erik left a
comment on this blog with a link to a free
online book,
The Authoritarians,
by the research psychologist and professor,
Bob Altemeyer. Erik is a bright guy, so I
was confident I would not be wasting my time
to check out the link. Now that I have
checked out the link, I feel like naming my
next born illegitimate child after Erik. I
got so wrapped up in the book, I read it in
one sitting.
The book
describes the psychology of authoritarian
followers and leaders. It does so in clear
and easy to read prose. Bob Altemeyer has a
wonderful sense of humor and he laces his
book with witty and funny comments. But the
core of the book is comprised of the
scientific studies of authoritarianism that
Altemeyer has been doing since 1966. This
is a hugely informative book that makes
sense of a whole lot of stuff that’s going
on in America and the world today.
Altemeyer
will change how you view militant
authoritarianism forever. For one thing, he
demonstrates that it is not merely a
political problem but profoundly a
psychological problem. Consequently, there
are no politics that will make it entirely
go away. Instead, it must be repeatedly
confronted and defeated in every generation
— if representative democracy is to be
preserved.
I recommend
that everyone — and that means
everyone and his or her dog — read
the book’s introduction (at the very
least). You can then decide for yourself
whether you want to go on to read the rest
of the book. But please give yourself the
opportunity to make that decision by reading
the introduction (The introduction begins
six pdf pages down — you can skip the
dedication, which comes first). If you read
the book and do not then fervently wish to
name your next illegitimate child after Erik
— who, after all, gave us the heads-up on
this book — I will be absolutely
astonished. And so will your child.
Last, please
consider passing this book around. It’s
free and accessible to anyone who can read
it online.
Larry Ogg—
As you may
recall, Ponerology shined a great deal of
light on and mainly concentrated on the
psychopaths who gain political power,
revealing their cunning methods of deceit,
their cold hearts void of conscience and
their uncanny ability too manipulate
information and the minds of social
conscience in mass, which in turn leads too
the massive death and destruction (as
history shows) of entire civilizations, a
history that any sane person might hope of
not repeating, but fears the inevitable is
close at hand. Additionally, as essential as
Ponerology is to understanding the minds and
methods of a psychopaths, I don’t feel that
it covered, in great depth, the minds of
those who do or don’t fall under their
spell; the book called the “The
Authoritarians” on the other hand, does just
that.
I finished reading it about three days ago
and I know you will love it and give it a
great review. It is extremely simple to read
and understand, and is the results of
psychological surveys and experiments done
on thousands of people over the years since
world war II, the hope being, an
understanding of how and why so many people
fall under the spell and follow tyrannical
leaders.
To have an
in-depth understanding of what Bob Altemeyer
calls the authoritarian leaders, we would
read Ponerology. To have an in-depth
understanding of those who fall under the
spell and support such leaders, we would
read the “The Authoritarians”. I hope
you enjoy it and thanks for another great
OP.
Brian
Wagner—
I didn't
actually listen to the cd but I read the
book so I'll repeat my review here.
It's really unfortunate that this book never
made the mainstream. It may be party because
it's available free [...]
Altemeyer's 'The Authoritarians' is a
compilation of years of research he's done
on a personality type he identified and
labeled "Right Wing Authoritarian." This
label does not imply that all authoritarians
are right wing. There can be left wing
authoritarians but we simply don't see them
in the US and Canada for his research was
mostly done.
Though the webpage has some political
diatribe it is mostly absent from the book
which explores the various beliefs of RWAs.
RWAs include very few in their 'in' group
and vilify their 'out' group. They have many
hypocrisy's which they don't notice due to
their highly compartmentalized thinking.
They respect might over reason and are
willing to do terrible things under the
direction of a proper authority, especially
if the person on the receiving end is some
sort of outsider. Their fear of the world
and change fuels their aggression. Worst of
all, they control a large portion of our
government.
While Right Wing Authoritarians can be
considered dangerous fools, Social
Dominators (also discussed in the book)
could arguably be considered evil. They view
people as tools to be used for their own
benefit, are uninterested in helping others
unless they will receive more in return and
delight in using RWAs for their own
purposes.
While the RWA personality corresponds very
highly with fundamentalist religion, it is
distinct. Anyone who's read Sam Harris'
'Letter to a Christian Nation' or 'The End
of Faith' should give this a read. After
reading this I believe that while religion
may focus people to maladaptive ends, this
book really gets at the root of the problem.
Jp Christy—
I'm on my
second listen of this book. I value the
insights and the science behind them.
Professor Altemeyer's relaxed reading of his
own material makes this information an
enjoyable listen. More importantly, his
explanation of the difference between a
conservative outlook and an authoritarian
personality has enabled me to understand how
a vocal, fearful minority can shout down the
civil discussions and nuanced outlook of a
less fearful, less forceful majority.
I have been recommending this book to
liberals and conservatives alike. Well done!
Miller—
Way back,
Blake Stacey recommended to me
The Authoritarians, by Bob
Altemeyer. It is a free online
book about the psychology of the
authoritarian personality. I get
the impression that Blake Stacey
is in the habit of recommending
this book to everyone. Allow me
to echo this recommendation to
you, my readers. It is a short,
easy, and fun read. Bob is
rather casual can chatty. He
never gets bogged down with
numbers, and yet he is clear
about how all his conclusions
are supported by scientific
data. And did I mention it's
available free?
The
Authoritarians is one of those
books that tries to answer the
question, "What the hell is
wrong with people?" The Bush
administration, the religious
right, the Creationist
movements... Personally, I'm a
moderate, an independent, but I
won't touch the Republican party
because it has gone to hell. Bob
Altemeyer, I suspect is in the
same position. But while I might
advance few pet theories as to
why this is, all I have to
defend them is my super-humble
rhetoric. Altemeyer's claims are
not pet theories, but scientific
findings. They could easily have
been falsified, but instead they
are strongly supported by a
variety of surveys and studies.
His explanation? There is a
certain kind of personality that
is well-correlated with all
these problems. Altemeyer calls
it Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA).
First, I should clarify a few
things. Authoritarianism does
not refer to the authorities
themselves, but the people who
would obey those authorities.
Also, "right-wing" is used in
the sense of being lawful or
proper, not in the sense of
being political conservative.
RWAs in the US tend to be very
politically conservative, but
those in soviet Russia would
probably be socialists. (There
is also such a thing as
Left-Wing Authoritarianism but
that is not covered by the
book.) Right-Wing Authoritarians
exhibit the following qualities:
submission to the established
authorities in society,
aggression in the name of these
authorities, and wanting to
enforce conventionalism on the
rest of society.
Now, if you're like me, you're
skeptical of the efficacy of any
such survey. But it turns out
that there is a very rigorous
way to create a valid survey
that involves testing many
possible questions and measuring
their correlations. He briefly
mentioned a similar survey
developed in the 1940s that was
discredited because of its poor
design. The new one is
scientifically tested. You might
ask, "How do we know that this
is all related to
authoritarianism as opposed to
religious fundamentalism?" We
know because the RWA scale
correlates with the above
qualities better than any
fundamentalist scale does.
Altemeyer deserves lots of
skeptical points for carefully
explaining all this.
The most interesting part might
be where Altemeyer suggests
solutions to the problem.
According to him, it would
probably be ineffective to argue
with these people directly.
Instead, we should work with
high RWAs them towards common
goals, since lets them see
outside of their community--high
RWAs tend to feel a lot of
pressure to be "normal", so we
just need to show them. We
should increase the visibility
minorities. And we should
promote higher education, which
tends to decrease people's RWA
scores. He also says it would
help if we reduced
fear-mongering, or if we taught
kids to question authorities,
but he doesn't think either of
these things will realistically
happen.
Aside from critical thinking,
one of the major topics of
skepticism is understanding why
people think the way they do. By
that standard, this is a great
book for skeptics. It gives
plenty of insight into RWAs and
what makes them tick.
Mathboy—
The Authoritarians is one of the half a
dozen or so books you'll read in your
life that actually will change your
life. The book is authored by a
researcher from the University of
Manitoba named Bob Altemeyer who has
spent 40 years investigating the
question of who, why, and how people
become what he terms "right wing
authoritarians" which is not to imply
that only right wingers are
authoritarians, BTW.
I read the Authoritarians and I can tell
you it explains a lot. It explains who
and what Rush Limbaugh is, how he
operates, why he lies and why it doesn't
bother him. Ditto Ann Coulter, Roger
Ailes and the whole Fox News crew and
why they don't see themselves as
everyone else (except other RWAs) sees
them. It explains what the relationship
between the kind of people who are in
"The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism
at the Heart of American Power" -
and the people who empower them by
voting for them and why they're always
dangerous.
It also explains what we're seeing right
now for instance in the 23rd
Congressional race in Upstate N.Y. for
anyone who is following that saga. (RWAs
can't stand anyone who doesn't exactly
adhere to their ideology)
Perfect examples of RWAs are the
Fundamentalists / Evangelical
Christians, Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh,
Dick Cheney but also probably a lot of
people you have to deal with on a
regular basis, for instance your
father-in-law or your neighbor.
Understanding what makes these people
tick, what they'll likely to do (or try
to do) and why they're impervious to
reasoned argument or contradictory
evidence changed my view of the world;
how many books can you say that about?
Precious few.
This book deserves to be very widely
disseminated and it's lessons learned by
all engaged, rational people because the
people this books exposes aren't going
away, aren't going to start playing fair
and to the extent they actually get into
power, wreak havoc up to and including
end of the world scenarios. A perfect
example of the later is WWII where the
authoritarian followers of Hitler (sorry
for the Hitler comparison but actually
it's EXACTLY correct in this context-
most of these researchers - Altemeyer,
Milgram et. al. started studying their
topic as a reaction to the "how could it
happen" question about 1932 Germany)
catapulted Hitler into power and then
supported everything he did, all the
while identifying "enemies" and "impure"
races as the enemy to be exterminated.
His work is a kind of continuation of
Stanley Milgram's famous work in the
area of obedience to authority, which I
also recommend: Obedience to Authority:
An Experimental View (Perennial
Classics).
I think you'll find this book "explains
a lot." Many scattered impressions about
the enemies of freedom and equality
become solidified by science and
coherently connected here.
You can get the audio book which is a
great listen while you're driving or
walking the dog and is read by the
researcher himself- I own it and love
it.
Telling other people about this book
should be counted as a public service to
society.
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