Authoritarianism and the Evolution of Mass Politics in Western Europe
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Birkbeck Main Building, Malet Street
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The Birkbeck Institute for Social Research (BISR) and Birkbeck Department of Politics present:
Authoritarianism and the Evolution of Mass Politics in Western Europe
Erik R. Tillman, DePaul University, Chicago, IL
Recent years have seen rising Eurosceptism and support for radical right parties through Western Europe. Much of the debate over this phenomenon centers on the relative importance of economic versus cultural factors. I argue that an approach rooted in an understanding of dispositional factors provides a stronger understanding. This study examines the effect of authoritarianism'"a dispositional trait characterized by a high need to maintain social cohesion, order, and security'"on Euroscepticism and PRR party support. Increasingly since the 1990s, Eurosceptical political elites and the radical right have presented themselves as defending national sovereignty and community against the threats posed by immigration, multiculturalism, and European integration. These elite arguments resonate with high authoritarian voters, who are likely to see these developments as threatening to the social order. In response, authoritarians have become increasingly Eurosceptical and more likely to support radical right parties. I present evidence drawn from national and cross-national survey data showing that authoritarianism increasingly structures EU attitudes in comparison to the early 1990s in which it had minimal effect, and that it predicts support for populist radical right parties. These findings help to advance our understanding of these recent developments.
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