Right-Wing Authoritarianism, Social Dominance Orientation, and Attachment: An Italian Study

The paper presents the results of a theoretical and empirical study of the relations between right-wing authoritarianism (RWA), social dominance orientation (SDO), and attachment. A study on 353 Italian university students in Turin was conducted. A correlation between RWA and SDO was found, and a structural equation model of the origins of RWA and SDO was built using attachment style as a principal predictor of the two constructs. Several psychosocial variables (course of studies undertaken, group participation, and importance of religion) were also used as predictors. The major results were: (a) RWA and SDO correlate positively, but not very strongly; (b) attachment styles directly and/or indirectly influence RWA and SDO; and (c) RWA and SDO each have specific predictors, but also share one predictor, importance of religion, which raises RWA scores, but lowers SDO scores. The limits and future developments of this research are discussed.