AQA Psychology notes on Social Influence (Authoritarian Personality)
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Course
Social Influence
Institution
AQA
These notes include content from AQA A-level Psychology and focus on 'Authoritarian Personality'. It covers all AO1 content, as well as evaluations (AO3) and application (AO2). The main points include Adorno's research and the F-scale. I have made notes on the other Social influence content, so ple...
Paper 1 - SOCIAL INFLUENCE
Dispositional Explanation of Obedience: The Authoritarian Personality
What do I need to know?
What is the authoritarian personality?
How did Adorno study the authoritarian personality?
How can the authoritarian personality be evaluated?
Questions to answer in class:
1. http://www.anesi.com/fscale.htm
2.
3. Spiderman and Hulk are very different characters.
One night they watch a film about the trial of a police officer who had been physically
abusive to prisoners.
As the judge was about to give his verdict, Spiderman said ‘the prosecution have a
good case against him. I think he’s guilty’.
Hulk replied ‘how can he be guilty? He was just doing what he had been told to do’.
How might the fact that Spiderman and Hulk are ‘very different characters’ explain
their differences of opinion? (4 marks)
• Adorno concluded that people with an authoritarian personality have a tendency to be
especially obedient to authority. Authoritarian personalities agree with F-scale statements
such as ‘rules are there to be followed’.
• It is possible that Hulk has an authoritarian personality and sees things in ‘black and white’
which is why he justifies the police officers actions as ‘just doing what he had been told to
do’.
• Adorno claimed that the authoritarian personality formed in childhood, as a result of harsh
parenting.
• Spiderman may have experienced unconditional love from his parents, resulting in him not
developing an authoritarian personality. He would be less likely to have an extreme
obedience to authority, hence their difference of opinion about the officer on trial.
Give your partner a mark out of
Notes
The F Scale:
Adomo et al (1950) proposed that prejudice is the results of an individuals personality type.
They piloted and developed a questionnaire,which they called the F scale (F for fascism)
Authoritarian Personality: A type of personality that Adorno argued was especially
susceptible to obeying people in authority. Such individuals are also thought to be
submissive to those of higher status and dismissive of inferiors. / disposable explanation
Authoritarian personality is a collection of traits developed from strict/rigid parenting
Examples of traits:
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