# Bob Altemeyer American-born Canadian social psychologist (b. 1940), Professor Emeritus at the University of Manitoba. Best known for developing the Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) scale, the dominant instrument in empirical authoritarianism research from his 1981 book *Right-Wing Authoritarianism* (and its sequels *Enemies of Freedom* 1988, *The Authoritarian Specter* 1996, and *The Authoritarians* 2006). Altemeyer's RWA scale superseded the original Adorno F-scale by addressing methodological criticisms (response-set bias, item directionality) while preserving the underlying construct. His work has been heavily replicated and is the empirical foundation for much of contemporary authoritarianism research, including the post-2016 political-psychology literature on Trump-era dynamics. His freely-available book *The Authoritarians* (2006) is the standard accessible introduction to the empirical literature. ## Biography and Academic Career **Robert A. Altemeyer** was born in **1940** in the United States. He earned his **Ph.D. in psychology** from **Carnegie Mellon University** and spent his career at the **University of Manitoba** (Winnipeg, Canada), where he is **Professor Emeritus** of psychology. Manitoba's social-psychology department became one of the principal centers for empirical authoritarianism research in North America through Altemeyer's work. ## Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale (1981) Altemeyer's foundational contribution. His **1981 book** ***Right-Wing Authoritarianism*** introduced the **RWA scale** — a psychometric instrument measuring three attitudinal clusters: **authoritarian submission** (deference to perceived legitimate authorities), **authoritarian aggression** (aggression toward out-groups when sanctioned by authorities), and **conventionalism** (adherence to established social norms and traditions). The RWA scale was explicitly designed to **supersede** the Adorno/Frenkel-Brunswik/Levinson/Sanford **F-scale** from ***[[The Authoritarian Personality]]*** (1950), which had been criticized for **response-set bias** (all items keyed in the authoritarian direction), **psychodynamic overreach** (Freudian interpretive framework), and poor factor structure. Altemeyer addressed these methodological criticisms while preserving the underlying construct: that a measurable personality disposition exists that predisposes individuals toward submission to authority, aggression toward perceived deviants, and rigid conventionalism. ## Major Works ***Right-Wing Authoritarianism*** (1981) — introduced the RWA scale. ***Enemies of Freedom*** (1988) — extended the empirical program. ***The Authoritarian Specter*** (1996) — examined the interaction between RWA and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO, from [[Jim Sidanius]] and [[Felicia Pratto]]), finding that the combination of high-RWA and high-SDO — which Altemeyer called **"Double Highs"** — predicted the most dangerous authoritarian personalities. ***The Authoritarians*** (2006) — a freely-available book written for a general audience, which became the standard accessible introduction to the empirical authoritarianism literature. ## Collaborations on Religious Fundamentalism Altemeyer collaborated extensively with **Bruce Hunsberger** on research examining the relationship between **religious fundamentalism** and RWA scores — finding consistently strong correlations and arguing that fundamentalist religious commitment is one of the strongest predictors of authoritarian attitudes. This research line has been productive for understanding the psychological overlap between religious-right commitment and authoritarian political attitudes. ## Post-2016 Re-popularization After the 2016 Trump election, *The Authoritarians* experienced a **major wave of public re-discovery** — recommended widely on social media and in political commentary as a framework for understanding Trump-era politics. Altemeyer engaged in post-2016 public commentary and updated his research assessments for contemporary audiences. The RWA framework became a staple reference in post-2016 political psychology journalism. ## KB Significance Altemeyer is the **principal empirical-instrument developer** in contemporary authoritarianism research — the figure whose RWA scale superseded Adorno's F-scale and became the dominant measurement tool for authoritarianism across social psychology. His work provides the psychometric foundation for the personality-level analysis of authoritarian political movements that complements the institutional-level analysis (Linz, Levitsky/Ziblatt) used throughout this KB's authoritarianism entries. ## See Also - [[Power Theory]] — the analytical framework - [[Karen Stenner]] — Authoritarian Predispositions; the activation variable Altemeyer's trait model lacks - [[Stanley Milgram]] — obedience; the complementary behavioral question - [[Philip Zimbardo]] — situational forces; institutional conditions that produce compliance - [[Milgram Obedience Experiments]] — empirical obedience findings - [[Stanford Prison Experiment]] — institutional dynamics - [[Authoritarianism]] - [[Right-Wing Authoritarianism]] — the scale - [[Theodor Adorno]] — F-scale predecessor