The Authoritarian Personality

This study investigates the psychological roots of prejudice and the specific character traits that incline individuals toward fascist ideologies. Through the development of the "F-scale" (fascism scale), the authors measure tendencies such as rigid adherence to conventional values, submissiveness to authority figures, and projectivity, where internal impulses are cast onto marginalized outgroups. The research argues that authoritarianism is not merely a political choice but a personality structure formed by specific social and family dynamics. This 2019 Verso edition supplements the original 1950 text with Adorno’s previously unpublished critical reflections on the project’s methodology and findings.

Sociologists, political scientists, and students of the Frankfurt School read this work to understand how social conditions translate into individual psychological states. Readers gain a framework for analyzing why segments of a population embrace right-wing populism and anti-Semitism during periods of upheaval. The book provides a technical vocabulary for identifying patterns of ethnocentrism and irrationalism in modern discourse. By engaging with these empirical findings, the reader understands the link between developmental history and the political susceptibility to reactionary movements.

Deep and open-ended; a demanding read.

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