The best way to
eliminate
the Communist menace in this country is to control the Jewish element which guides it.
Adorno-T-Authoritarian-Personality-Harper-Bros-1950
It is wrong for Jews and Gentiles to intermarry.
l-18. It is best that Jews should have their own fraternities and sororities, since
they have their own particular interests and activities which they can best engage in together, just as Christians get along best in all-Christian fraterni- ties.
l-21. It is sometimes all right to ban Jews from certain apartment houses.
l-24. Anyone who employs many people should be careful not to hire a large per-
centage of Jews.
ll-3. It would hurt the business of a large concern if it had too many Jewish em-
ployees.
11-6. The best way to eliminate the Communist menace in this country is to con-
trol the Jewish element which guides it.
ll-9. In order to handle the Jewish problem, Gentiles must meet fire with fire and
use the same ruthless tactics with the Jews that the Jews use with the Gen-
tiles.
ll-12. It is not wise for a Christian to be seen too much with Jews, as he might be
taken for a Jew, or be looked down upon by his Christian friends.
ll-15. One of the first steps to be taken in cleaning up the movies and generally improving the situation in Hollywood is to put an end to Jewish domination
there.
ll-18. Most hotels should deny admittance to Jews, as a general rule.
ll-21. Jewish leaders should encourage Jews to be more inconspicuous, to keep
out of professions and activities already overcrowded with Jews, and to
keep out of the public notice.
ll-24. It would be to the best interests of all if the Jews would form their own na-
tion and keep more to themselves.
Semitism is merely a rational reaction of Gentiles to the intrinsic badness of Jews.
d and e. SuBSCALES "SECLUSivE" (Ss) AND "INTRUSIVE" (S1). It is often stated that the cause of anti-Semitism lies in the fact that "Jews are different," and it has often been suggested that assimilation is the only solution to "the Jewish problem. " Indeed, many Jews have taken the same point of view, attempting in every way possible to take over the prevalent culture of their local American community, and becoming anxious over all signs of "foreign Jewishness" in their family and friends. This is not the place to discuss the problem of the adjustment of Jews and other minorities to American cul- ture. The question raised here concerns instead the psychology of anti- Semites: Is Jewish assimilation what they really want? If Jews behaved in a thoroughly conforming manner, would this satisfy the anti-Semites? One
? 66 THE AUTHORIT ARIAN PERSONALITY
indication that these questions will receive negative answers lies in the fact that highly assimilated Jews usually meet the same sort of discrimination that others do. Another sign in the same direction is the stereotypy so com- mon in anti-Semitism. To the extent that a person is reacting to his self- created label or image of "the Jew" rather than to the particular Jewish individual with whom he is dealing, it matters but little what the Jew in question is like. The sign "no Jews wanted" is entirely insensitive to the virtues or faults of the specific individual applying for a job.
l-5. l-17. l-20.
l-23. ll-13. ll-17. ll-20. ll-23.
TABLE 4 (III)
ANTI-sEMITISM SuBsCALEs "SEcLusiVE vs. INTRUSIVE" A. "Seclusive"
One trouble with Jewish businessmen is that they stick together and con- nive, so that a Gentile doesn't have a fair chance in competition.
Much resentment against Jews stems from their tending to keep apart and to exclude Gentiles from Jewish social life.
The Jews should give up their un-Christian religion with all its strange cus- toms (kosher diet, special holidays, etc. ) and participate actively and sin- cerely in the Christian religion.
Jews tend to remain a foreign element in American society, to preserve their old social standards and to resist the American way of life.
One general fault of Jews is their overaggressiveness, a strong tendency always to display their Jewish looks, manners, and breeding.
The Jewish districts in most cities are results of the clannishness and stick- togetherness of Jews.
Jewish millionaires may do a certain amount to help their own people, but little of their money goes into worthwhile American causes.
The Jews keep too much to themselves, instead of taking the proper inter- est in community problems and good government.
B. "Intrusive"
1-11. There are too many Jews in the various federal agencies and bureaus in Washington, and they have too much control over our national policies. l-16. The Jews should not pry so much into Christian activities and organiza-
tions nor seek so much recognition and prestige from Christians.
1-19? One thing that has hindered the Jews in establishing their own nation is the fact that they really have no culture of their own; instead, they tend to copy the things that are important to the native citizens of whatever
country they are in.
l-25. Jews go too far in hiding their Jewishness, especially such extremes as
changing their names, straightening noses, and imitating Christian manners and customs.
It would hurt the business of a large concern if it had too many Jewish employees.
The trouble with letting Jews into a nice neighborhood is that they grad-
ually give it a typical Jewish atmosphere.
11-19. The true Christian can never forgive the Jews for their crucifixion of
Christ.
II-25. When Jews create large funds for educational or scientific research
(Rosenwald, Heller, etc. ), it is mainly due to a desire for fame and public notice rather than a really sincere scientific interest.
? THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY
In an attempt to quantify attitudes regarding assimilation, two subscales representing opposing sides on this issue were included in the A-S scale (Table 4(III) ). Subscale "Seclusive" (S8 ) takes the stand that Jews are too foreign and unassimilated; it accuses them of being clannish, of keeping apart, and of not being sufficiently concerned with other groups and other ways. The implication of these items is that Jews ought to assimilate more, that they could solve the problem of anti-Semitism themselves by entering more actively into American life and by conforming more closely with American conventions and standards. (Two of these items were also included in other
subscales, Item l-5 being also in ST, and Il-q in S0 ).
Subscale "Intrusive" (S1), on the other hand, accuses the Jews of over-
assimilation and overparticipation. When Jews seem to be conforming in social behavior they are actually just "imitating" and "hiding their Jewish- ness" (Item l-2 5). Their attempts to join organizations are based on prestige- seeking and the desire to pry (Item I-I6). Their admission into the govern- ment or into neighborhoods only leads to attempts by them at control and domination of non-Jews (Items 1-n, Il-7). Their seeming philanthropy is based on selfish motives (Item Il-25). And finally, they lack a culture of their own and must therefore copy or "sponge on" the culture of the country in which they live (Item I-I9)? The implication of these items, in direct contrast to those in the "Seclusive" subscale, is that Jews ought to keep more to themselves and to develop a culture, preferably even a nation, of their own. (Four of these items were also included in other subscales, Item 1-I I being also in ST, I-I6 and Il-7 in S0 , and Il-3 in SA. )
f. "NEUTRAL" ITEMS NoT IN A SUBSCALE (TABLE 5(III)). Four items in the A-S scale were not included in any of the five subscales. This illustrates
TABLE 5 (III)
"NEUTRAL" ITEMS IN THE ANTI-SEMITISM SCALE
I-22. One big trouble with Jews is that they are never contented, but always
I-26. II-22. II-26.
try for the best jobs and the most money.
There is little doubt that Jewish pressure is largely responsible for the U. S. getting into the war with Germany.
There is little hope of correcting the racial defects of the Jews, since these defects are simply in their blood.
On the whole, the Jews have probably contributed less to American life than any other group.
the fact that the subscales represent "components" of anti-Semitism only in a general prestatistical sense. A correlational analysis of the scale would very probably indicate components containing these four items, since they deal with significant aspects of anti-Semitic ideology and since they correlate well with the total scale.
Item Il-22 is worth noting in particular; it takes a hereditarian-racist stand concerning the "defects" of the Jews and, like all hereditarian approaches, is pessimistic regarding improvement of group relations along democratic
? 68 THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
lines. To the person who feels that Jews have special and basic faults which cannot be changed, all talk about ending discrimination, about improving Jewish-Gentile relations, and about "what Jews can do to help themselves" is meaningless and irrelevant. The fact that many people who take this "Jewish immutability" viewpoint also tend to tell the Jews how they must change is another sign of the illogicality of anti-Semitism. This idea of the insolubility of the problem is also expressed in Items l-7 and l-1 z.
3. THE TOT AL ANTI-SEMITISM (A-S) SCALE
The total anti-Semitism scale consists of fifty-two items and comprises all the items in the five subscales as well as the four neutral items discussed above. Both parts of the scale are present in Table 6(111), with instructions to sub- jects, just as it was administered.
. ?
TABLE 6 (III)
THE ToTAL ANTI-SEMITISM ScALE Public Opinion Questionnaire A
This is an investigation of general public opinion concerning Jewish people. The following are statements with which some people agree and others disagree. Please mark each one in the left margin, according to the amount of your agree- ment or disagreement, by using the following scale:
+I:
+2:
+3:
_ _ I.
_ _ 2. _ _ 3? _ _ 4? _ _ 5? _ _ 6. _ _ 7?
_ _ 8. _ _ 9?
_ _ Io.
_ _ I I.
slight support, agreement moderate support, " strong support, "
- I : slight opposition, disagreement - 2 : moderate opposition, "
-3: strong opposition,
Jews seem to prefer the most luxurious, extravagant, and sensual way of living.
The Jews must be considered a bad influence on Christian culture and civilization.
In order to maintain a nice residential neighborhood it is best to pre- vent Jews from living in it.
A major fault of the Jews is their conceit, overbearing pride, and their idea that they are a chosen race.
One trouble with Jewish businessmen is that they stick together and connive, so that a Gentile doesn't have a fair chance in competition. Colleges should adopt a quota system by which they limit the number of Jews in fields which have too many Jews now.
No matter how Americanized a Jew may seem to be, there is always something basically Jewish underneath, a loyalty to Jewry and a man- ner that is never totally changed.
Jewish power and control in money matters is far out of proportion to the number of Jews in the total population.
A step toward solving the Jewish problem would be to prevent Jews from getting into superior, profitable positions i. n society, for a while at least.
Districts containing many Jews always seem to be smelly, dirty, shabby, and unattractive.
There are too many Jews in the various federal agencies and bureaus in ~ashington, and they have too much control over our national pol- ICies.
? __12.
__13. __14.
___15. ___I6.
___17.
The Jewish proble~ is so general and deep that one often doubts that democratic methods can ever solve it.
There are a few exceptions, but in general Jews are pretty much alike.
Jews tend to lower the general standard of living by their willingness to do the most menial work and to live under standards that are far below average.
It is wrong for Jews and Gentiles to intermarry.
The Jews should not pry so much into Christian acnvmes and or- ganizations nor seek so much recognition and prestige from Christians. Much resenrment against Jews stems from their tending to keep apart and to exclude Gentiles from Jewish social life.
_ _ 20.
_ _ _ 21.
_ _ _ 22. _ _ _ 23. _ _ 24. _ _ _ 25.
_ _ 26.
The Jews should give up their un-Christian religion with all its strange customs (kosher diet, special holidays, etc. ) and participate actively and sincerely in the Christian religion.
It is sometimes all right to ban Jews from certain apartment houses. One big trouble with Jews is that they are never contented, but always try for the best jobs and the most money.
Jews tend to remain a foreign element in American society, to preserve their old social standards and to resist the American way of life. Anyone who employs many people should be careful not to hire a large percentage of Jews.
Jews go too far in hiding their Jewishness, especially such extremes as changing their names, straightening noses, and imitating Christian manners and customs.
There is little doubt that Jewish pressure is largely responsible for the U. S. getting into the war with Germany.
THE ToTAL ANTI-SEMITISM ScALE
Public Opinion Questionnaire S
THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY
_ _ I8. It is best that Jews should have their own fraternities and sororities, since they have their own particular interests and activities which they can best engage in together, just as Christians get along best in all- Christian fraternities.
_ _ 19. One thing that has hindered the Jews from establishing their own nation is the fact that they really have no culture of their own; instead, they tend to copy the things that are important to the native citizens of whatever country they are in.
This is an investigation of general public opinion concerning Jewish people. The following are statements with which some people agree and others disagree. Please mark each one in the left margin, according to the amount of your agreement or disagreement, by using the following scale:
+1: slight support, agreement +2: moderate support, " +3: strong support, "
- 1 : slight opposition, disagreement -2: moderate opposition, "
-3. strong opposition, "
__1. The Jews should make sincere efforts to rid themselves of their con- spicuous and irritating faults, if they really want to stop being per- secuted.
2. War shows up the fact that the Jews are not patriotic or willing to make sacrifices for their country.
3? It would hurt the business of a large concern if it had too many Jewish employees.
? __4? __5?
__6. _ _ 7?
__8. __9?
ro.
__II.
__I2.
__I3. __I4.
__I5.
I6.
_ _ I7.
__IS. __Ig.
__2o.
__2I.
__22.
__23.
There is something different and strange about Jews; one never knows what they are thinking or planning, nor what makes them tick. Jews may have moral standards that they apply in their dealings with each other, but with Christians they are unscrupulous, ruthless, and undependable.
The best way to eliminate the Communist menace in this country is to control the Jewish element which guides it.
The trouble with letting Jews into a nice neighborhood is that they gradually give it a typical Jewish atmosphere.
The Jew's first loyalty is to Jewry rather than to his country.
In order to handle the Jewish problem, Gentiles must meet fire with fire and use the same ruthless tactics with the Jews that the Jews use with the Gentiles.
I can hardly imagine myself marrying a Jew.
Jews seem to have an aversion to plain hard work; they tend to be a parasitic element in society by finding easy, nonproductive jobs.
It is not wise for a Christian to be seen too much with Jews, as he might be taken for a Jew, or be looked down upon by his Christian friends.
One general fault of Jews is their overaggressiveness, a strong tendency always to display their Jewish looks, manners, and breeding.
There seems to be some revolutionary streak in the Jewish make-up as shown by the fact that there are so many Jewish Communists and agitators.
One of the first steps to be taken in cleaning up the movies and gen- erally improving the situation in Hollywood is to put an end to Jewish domination there.
Jews should be more concerned with their personal appearance, and not be so dirty and smelly and unkempt.
The Jewish districts in most cities are results of the clannishness and stick-togetherness of Jews.
Most hotels should deny admittance to Jews, as a general rule.
The true Christian can never forgive the Jews for their crucifixion of Christ.
Jewish millionaires may do a certain amount to help their own peo-
ple, but little of their money goes into worthwhile American causes. Jewish leaders should encourage Jews to be more inconspicuous, to keep out of professions and activities already overcrowded with Jews, and to keep out of the public notice.
There is little hope of correcting the racial defects of the Jews, since these defects are simply in their blood.
The Jews keep too much to themselves, instead of taking the proper interest in community problems and good government.
THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
_ _ 24. It would be to the best interests of all if the Jews would form their
own nation and keep more to themselves.
_ _ 25. When Jews create large funds for educational or scientific research
(Rosenwald, Heller, etc. ) it is mainly due to a desire for fame and
public notice rather than a really sincere scientific interest.
_ _ _ 26. On the whole, the Jews have probably contributed less to American
life than any other group.
? THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY
7I
The scale is intended to measure the individual's readiness to support or oppose anti-Semitic ideology as a whole. This ideology consists, according to the conception on which the scale was based, of stereotyped negative opinions describing the Jews as threatening, immoral, and categorically dif- ferent from non-Jews, and of hostile attitudes urging various forms of re- striction, exclusion, and suppression as a means of solving "the Jewish prob- lem. " Anti-Semitism is conceived, then, as a general way of thinking about Jews and Jewish-Gentile relations.
Can one legitimately speak of a readiness in the individual to accept anti- Semitic ideology as a whole? More concretely, can it be expected that people will respond relatively consistently to such varied scale items? These are questions which must be answered empirically. The content and generality of anti-Semitic ideology, and the adequacy with which it is measured by the present scale are indicated below by a statistical analysis of scale results. The validity of the scale will be indicated by correlations of the scale with measures of other, theoretically related, variables, and by analysis of the responses of the two subjects discussed in Chapter II.
C. RESULTS: STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF THE SCALE
The procedure used for all scales in the present research was to allow six choices of response for each item: slight, moderate, or strong agreement, and the same degrees of disagreement, with no middle or neutral category. Each subject indicated the degree of his agreement by marking +r, +2, or +3, disagreement by -I, -2, or -3.
It seemed likely that three degrees of agreement or disagreement could easily be distinguished by the subjects, and that three degrees gave them the best chance to record clearly felt differences in strength of agreement or disagreement. Certainly the data indicate that all six response categories were used. The "don't know" category has been a source of difficulty and con- troversy in many fields of psychological research ( I2 I). In techniques which permit its use, it tends to be the most frequent choice. Without it, the subject must take a stand one way or the other, although the categories of slight agreement and slight disagreement permit him to be nearly neutral. If a subject is unable to decide, he can, of course, omit the item; but there were never more than 2 to 3 per cent omissions among subjects taking the questionnaire, and never more than I per cent of the group to which it was administered failed to fill it out adequately. Furthermore, the fre- quency with which the "moderate" and "strong" categories were used indi- cates that the items were relatively unambiguous.
The responses were converted into scores by a uniform scoring system. Since higher scores were intended to e~press increasing anti-Semitism, all responses were scored as follows:
? 72
THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
-3 =Ipoint -2 =2 points -I =3points
+I=5points +2 =6points +3 =7points
It will be noted that the scoring skips from 3 to 5 points between - I and +1. Four points represented the hypothetical neutral response, and was assigned when the item was omitted. It probably makes little difference statistically that this scheme was used rather than a six-point one in which +I would receive 4 points. This scheme was used mainly because there seemed to be a greater psychological gap between -I and +I responses than between any other two adjacent responses. It was also convenient in marking the omissions.
A person's scale score is simply the sum of his scores on the single items. For the 52 items the scores can range between 52 points (I point on each item, indicating strong opposition to anti-Semitism) and 364 points (7 points on each item, strong anti-Semitism). When the scale score is divided by 52 we obtain the mean score per item; thus, a total score of 78 can also be stated as a score per item of I. 5.
The initial results obtained with the A-S scale have been published else- where (7I). The present discussion will deal with the second administration of the scale; on this occasion the questionnaire administered contained, in addition to the A-S scale, most of the other techniques which were used in subsequent stages of the research. The questionnaire was administered in April, I944, to a class in Introductory Psychology at the University of Cali- fornia. It was given as a routine class activity in two parts, separated by an interval of one week; Part I (Questionnaire A) of the A-S scale was given in the first session, Part II (Questionnaire S) in the second. The class was de- signed for nonmajors in psychology and was rather heterogeneous with re- spect to major subject and year in school.
In view of a possible sex difference, the questionnaires of men and women were separated for statistical purposes. Due to wartime conditions, however, there were fewer than thirty men in the group, so that no statistics on men? were computed. The data presented here are based on the questionnaires of the I44 women subjects, including nineteen members of major minorities: Jews, Negroes, Chinese, and foreign-born. In all subsequent groups the sta- tistical analysis was limited to the questionnaires of native-born, white, non- Jewish Americans.
1. RELIABILITY
The reliability and related statistical properties of the A-S scale and its subscales are presented in Table 7(III). The total-scale reliability of . 92 meets rigorous statistical standards, especially in view of the fact that Part II was administered a week after Part I. (The reliability of the scale on the
? Range
c
TABLE 7 (III)
RELIABILITY OF THE ANTI-SEMITISM SCALE AND ITS SUBSCALES
Total Part Part SubsQale
Property Scale I II so ST SA ss SI
Reliability
Number of i terns Mean (total) c Mean (odd half) Mean (even half)
S. D. (total )c S. D. (odd half) S. D. (even half)
0 92
52 2. 70
2. 74 2. 66
1. 11 1. 21 1. 12
1. 0-5. 5
0 94
26 2. 74
2. 94 2. 54
1. 21 1. 31 1. 15
1. 0-5. 7
0 91
26 2. 66 2. 86 2. 46
1. 12 1. 19 1. 15
1. 0-5. 8
. 84
12 3. 08 3. 52 2. 65
1. 33 1. 55 1. 30
1. 0-6. 5
0 89
10
2. 59 2. 84 2. 34
1. 23 1. 34 1. 32
1. 0-5. 7
0 89
16 2. 47 2. 48 2. 46
1. 18 1. 21 1. 25
1. 0-5. 8
. 71
8
3. 28 3. 00 3. 55
1. 26 1. 35 1. 45
1. 0-6. 3
0 84
8 2. 55 2. 60 2. 50
1. 24 1. 30 1. 35
1. 0-5. 9
. aThe subscales are abbreviated as follows: subscale "Offensive" (S0), "Threatening" (ST). "Attitudes" (SA),
"Seclusive" (Ss>. "Intrusive" (S ) 1
. bThe reliability of the total scale was obtained by correlating scores on Part I (the half administered first) with scores on Part II (in second half of questionnaire). All other reliabilities are based on correlations between the odd items and the even items. The correlations were corrected by the Spearman-Brown formula to ? give the reliability values in the table.
? CThe values of the means, S. O. 's and ranges are given in terms of mean score per item. If multiplied by the number of items in the scale or subscale in question, they are converted into values representing mean per total scale or subscale.
? 74
THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
first group studied, as previously published, was . 98. ) The two parts were equated in terms of the subscales, so that an equal number of items from each subscale appeared in each part. Parts I and II are also roughly equivalent in terms of mean and standard deviation. In view of the high correlation be- tween Parts I and II, as well as their equivalence and their high reliabilities (. 94 and . 91), it would appear that either of them alone provides as good a quantitative measure as does the total scale.
It will be noted that the over-all mean is relatively low ( qo. 2 as compared with a theoretical neutral point of 2o8) and that the obtained range includes extremely low scores but does not include the highest possible scores. The item analysis, as will be seen below, suggests the reason for this: despite our attempt to limit the scale to pseudodemocratic statements numerous items were still too openly or crudely prejudiced and had extremely low means
(below 3. 0). The present group of students was, however, less anti-Semitic on the average than the one studied earlier, the latter having a mean of I 58 and a range of 52-303. The distribution of scores in both cases was fairly symmetrical but platykurtic, with very little clustering of scores around the mean.
The reliabilities of the total scale and of the two parts are almost matched by the high reliabilities of the subscales. Reliabilities of . 8 to ? 9 are very satisfactory even for scales three or four times their length.
With regard to reliability, equivalence of halves, and form of distribution, then, it seems safe to conclude that the A-S scale (as well as the subscales) provides an adequate measuring instrument. It ranks the subjects with a rela- tively small error of measurement along a continuum or dimension. That this dimension may be called general anti-Semitism must still be demonstrated by the data on item analysis and validity which follow. No claim is made that the dimension is "pure" or homogeneous. To the extent that the scale is valid, it provides a measure of anti-Semitism in most of its generality and complexity. More specifically, it may be claimed that the higher an indi- vidual's score, the greater his acceptance of anti-Semitic propaganda and the greater his disposition to engage in anti-Semitic accusations and programs of one form or another.
2. INTERCORREL A TIONS OF T H E SUBSCALES
The above reliability data indicate that people are relatively consistent in their responses to the A-S scale and to the individual subscales dealing with relatively specific kinds of imagery and attitudes. Correlations among the subscales are shown in Table 8(III).
Intercorrelations of ? 74 to . 85 are of considerable significance. The fact that they involve subscales dealing with so great a variety of opinions and attitudes is an important source of support for the hypothesis that anti-
? Subscale
"Offensive" "Threatening" "Attitudes" "Intrus ive?
"Threatening" ? Attitudes"
. 85 . 83 . 84
? seclusive" . 75
. 74 . 74
THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY TABLE 8 (III)
INI'ERCORREIATIONSa OF THE A-8 SUBSCALES
75
Total A-S
92 . 93 . 94
aThese are the raw correlation coefficients. If they were corrected for attenuation to give the maximal value theoretically obtainable (with perfectly reliable instruments), they would all be well over . 90.
Semitism is a general frame of mind, a way of viewing Jews and Jewish- Gentile interaction.
l-18. It is best that Jews should have their own fraternities and sororities, since
they have their own particular interests and activities which they can best engage in together, just as Christians get along best in all-Christian fraterni- ties.
l-21. It is sometimes all right to ban Jews from certain apartment houses.
l-24. Anyone who employs many people should be careful not to hire a large per-
centage of Jews.
ll-3. It would hurt the business of a large concern if it had too many Jewish em-
ployees.
11-6. The best way to eliminate the Communist menace in this country is to con-
trol the Jewish element which guides it.
ll-9. In order to handle the Jewish problem, Gentiles must meet fire with fire and
use the same ruthless tactics with the Jews that the Jews use with the Gen-
tiles.
ll-12. It is not wise for a Christian to be seen too much with Jews, as he might be
taken for a Jew, or be looked down upon by his Christian friends.
ll-15. One of the first steps to be taken in cleaning up the movies and generally improving the situation in Hollywood is to put an end to Jewish domination
there.
ll-18. Most hotels should deny admittance to Jews, as a general rule.
ll-21. Jewish leaders should encourage Jews to be more inconspicuous, to keep
out of professions and activities already overcrowded with Jews, and to
keep out of the public notice.
ll-24. It would be to the best interests of all if the Jews would form their own na-
tion and keep more to themselves.
Semitism is merely a rational reaction of Gentiles to the intrinsic badness of Jews.
d and e. SuBSCALES "SECLUSivE" (Ss) AND "INTRUSIVE" (S1). It is often stated that the cause of anti-Semitism lies in the fact that "Jews are different," and it has often been suggested that assimilation is the only solution to "the Jewish problem. " Indeed, many Jews have taken the same point of view, attempting in every way possible to take over the prevalent culture of their local American community, and becoming anxious over all signs of "foreign Jewishness" in their family and friends. This is not the place to discuss the problem of the adjustment of Jews and other minorities to American cul- ture. The question raised here concerns instead the psychology of anti- Semites: Is Jewish assimilation what they really want? If Jews behaved in a thoroughly conforming manner, would this satisfy the anti-Semites? One
? 66 THE AUTHORIT ARIAN PERSONALITY
indication that these questions will receive negative answers lies in the fact that highly assimilated Jews usually meet the same sort of discrimination that others do. Another sign in the same direction is the stereotypy so com- mon in anti-Semitism. To the extent that a person is reacting to his self- created label or image of "the Jew" rather than to the particular Jewish individual with whom he is dealing, it matters but little what the Jew in question is like. The sign "no Jews wanted" is entirely insensitive to the virtues or faults of the specific individual applying for a job.
l-5. l-17. l-20.
l-23. ll-13. ll-17. ll-20. ll-23.
TABLE 4 (III)
ANTI-sEMITISM SuBsCALEs "SEcLusiVE vs. INTRUSIVE" A. "Seclusive"
One trouble with Jewish businessmen is that they stick together and con- nive, so that a Gentile doesn't have a fair chance in competition.
Much resentment against Jews stems from their tending to keep apart and to exclude Gentiles from Jewish social life.
The Jews should give up their un-Christian religion with all its strange cus- toms (kosher diet, special holidays, etc. ) and participate actively and sin- cerely in the Christian religion.
Jews tend to remain a foreign element in American society, to preserve their old social standards and to resist the American way of life.
One general fault of Jews is their overaggressiveness, a strong tendency always to display their Jewish looks, manners, and breeding.
The Jewish districts in most cities are results of the clannishness and stick- togetherness of Jews.
Jewish millionaires may do a certain amount to help their own people, but little of their money goes into worthwhile American causes.
The Jews keep too much to themselves, instead of taking the proper inter- est in community problems and good government.
B. "Intrusive"
1-11. There are too many Jews in the various federal agencies and bureaus in Washington, and they have too much control over our national policies. l-16. The Jews should not pry so much into Christian activities and organiza-
tions nor seek so much recognition and prestige from Christians.
1-19? One thing that has hindered the Jews in establishing their own nation is the fact that they really have no culture of their own; instead, they tend to copy the things that are important to the native citizens of whatever
country they are in.
l-25. Jews go too far in hiding their Jewishness, especially such extremes as
changing their names, straightening noses, and imitating Christian manners and customs.
It would hurt the business of a large concern if it had too many Jewish employees.
The trouble with letting Jews into a nice neighborhood is that they grad-
ually give it a typical Jewish atmosphere.
11-19. The true Christian can never forgive the Jews for their crucifixion of
Christ.
II-25. When Jews create large funds for educational or scientific research
(Rosenwald, Heller, etc. ), it is mainly due to a desire for fame and public notice rather than a really sincere scientific interest.
? THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY
In an attempt to quantify attitudes regarding assimilation, two subscales representing opposing sides on this issue were included in the A-S scale (Table 4(III) ). Subscale "Seclusive" (S8 ) takes the stand that Jews are too foreign and unassimilated; it accuses them of being clannish, of keeping apart, and of not being sufficiently concerned with other groups and other ways. The implication of these items is that Jews ought to assimilate more, that they could solve the problem of anti-Semitism themselves by entering more actively into American life and by conforming more closely with American conventions and standards. (Two of these items were also included in other
subscales, Item l-5 being also in ST, and Il-q in S0 ).
Subscale "Intrusive" (S1), on the other hand, accuses the Jews of over-
assimilation and overparticipation. When Jews seem to be conforming in social behavior they are actually just "imitating" and "hiding their Jewish- ness" (Item l-2 5). Their attempts to join organizations are based on prestige- seeking and the desire to pry (Item I-I6). Their admission into the govern- ment or into neighborhoods only leads to attempts by them at control and domination of non-Jews (Items 1-n, Il-7). Their seeming philanthropy is based on selfish motives (Item Il-25). And finally, they lack a culture of their own and must therefore copy or "sponge on" the culture of the country in which they live (Item I-I9)? The implication of these items, in direct contrast to those in the "Seclusive" subscale, is that Jews ought to keep more to themselves and to develop a culture, preferably even a nation, of their own. (Four of these items were also included in other subscales, Item 1-I I being also in ST, I-I6 and Il-7 in S0 , and Il-3 in SA. )
f. "NEUTRAL" ITEMS NoT IN A SUBSCALE (TABLE 5(III)). Four items in the A-S scale were not included in any of the five subscales. This illustrates
TABLE 5 (III)
"NEUTRAL" ITEMS IN THE ANTI-SEMITISM SCALE
I-22. One big trouble with Jews is that they are never contented, but always
I-26. II-22. II-26.
try for the best jobs and the most money.
There is little doubt that Jewish pressure is largely responsible for the U. S. getting into the war with Germany.
There is little hope of correcting the racial defects of the Jews, since these defects are simply in their blood.
On the whole, the Jews have probably contributed less to American life than any other group.
the fact that the subscales represent "components" of anti-Semitism only in a general prestatistical sense. A correlational analysis of the scale would very probably indicate components containing these four items, since they deal with significant aspects of anti-Semitic ideology and since they correlate well with the total scale.
Item Il-22 is worth noting in particular; it takes a hereditarian-racist stand concerning the "defects" of the Jews and, like all hereditarian approaches, is pessimistic regarding improvement of group relations along democratic
? 68 THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
lines. To the person who feels that Jews have special and basic faults which cannot be changed, all talk about ending discrimination, about improving Jewish-Gentile relations, and about "what Jews can do to help themselves" is meaningless and irrelevant. The fact that many people who take this "Jewish immutability" viewpoint also tend to tell the Jews how they must change is another sign of the illogicality of anti-Semitism. This idea of the insolubility of the problem is also expressed in Items l-7 and l-1 z.
3. THE TOT AL ANTI-SEMITISM (A-S) SCALE
The total anti-Semitism scale consists of fifty-two items and comprises all the items in the five subscales as well as the four neutral items discussed above. Both parts of the scale are present in Table 6(111), with instructions to sub- jects, just as it was administered.
. ?
TABLE 6 (III)
THE ToTAL ANTI-SEMITISM ScALE Public Opinion Questionnaire A
This is an investigation of general public opinion concerning Jewish people. The following are statements with which some people agree and others disagree. Please mark each one in the left margin, according to the amount of your agree- ment or disagreement, by using the following scale:
+I:
+2:
+3:
_ _ I.
_ _ 2. _ _ 3? _ _ 4? _ _ 5? _ _ 6. _ _ 7?
_ _ 8. _ _ 9?
_ _ Io.
_ _ I I.
slight support, agreement moderate support, " strong support, "
- I : slight opposition, disagreement - 2 : moderate opposition, "
-3: strong opposition,
Jews seem to prefer the most luxurious, extravagant, and sensual way of living.
The Jews must be considered a bad influence on Christian culture and civilization.
In order to maintain a nice residential neighborhood it is best to pre- vent Jews from living in it.
A major fault of the Jews is their conceit, overbearing pride, and their idea that they are a chosen race.
One trouble with Jewish businessmen is that they stick together and connive, so that a Gentile doesn't have a fair chance in competition. Colleges should adopt a quota system by which they limit the number of Jews in fields which have too many Jews now.
No matter how Americanized a Jew may seem to be, there is always something basically Jewish underneath, a loyalty to Jewry and a man- ner that is never totally changed.
Jewish power and control in money matters is far out of proportion to the number of Jews in the total population.
A step toward solving the Jewish problem would be to prevent Jews from getting into superior, profitable positions i. n society, for a while at least.
Districts containing many Jews always seem to be smelly, dirty, shabby, and unattractive.
There are too many Jews in the various federal agencies and bureaus in ~ashington, and they have too much control over our national pol- ICies.
? __12.
__13. __14.
___15. ___I6.
___17.
The Jewish proble~ is so general and deep that one often doubts that democratic methods can ever solve it.
There are a few exceptions, but in general Jews are pretty much alike.
Jews tend to lower the general standard of living by their willingness to do the most menial work and to live under standards that are far below average.
It is wrong for Jews and Gentiles to intermarry.
The Jews should not pry so much into Christian acnvmes and or- ganizations nor seek so much recognition and prestige from Christians. Much resenrment against Jews stems from their tending to keep apart and to exclude Gentiles from Jewish social life.
_ _ 20.
_ _ _ 21.
_ _ _ 22. _ _ _ 23. _ _ 24. _ _ _ 25.
_ _ 26.
The Jews should give up their un-Christian religion with all its strange customs (kosher diet, special holidays, etc. ) and participate actively and sincerely in the Christian religion.
It is sometimes all right to ban Jews from certain apartment houses. One big trouble with Jews is that they are never contented, but always try for the best jobs and the most money.
Jews tend to remain a foreign element in American society, to preserve their old social standards and to resist the American way of life. Anyone who employs many people should be careful not to hire a large percentage of Jews.
Jews go too far in hiding their Jewishness, especially such extremes as changing their names, straightening noses, and imitating Christian manners and customs.
There is little doubt that Jewish pressure is largely responsible for the U. S. getting into the war with Germany.
THE ToTAL ANTI-SEMITISM ScALE
Public Opinion Questionnaire S
THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY
_ _ I8. It is best that Jews should have their own fraternities and sororities, since they have their own particular interests and activities which they can best engage in together, just as Christians get along best in all- Christian fraternities.
_ _ 19. One thing that has hindered the Jews from establishing their own nation is the fact that they really have no culture of their own; instead, they tend to copy the things that are important to the native citizens of whatever country they are in.
This is an investigation of general public opinion concerning Jewish people. The following are statements with which some people agree and others disagree. Please mark each one in the left margin, according to the amount of your agreement or disagreement, by using the following scale:
+1: slight support, agreement +2: moderate support, " +3: strong support, "
- 1 : slight opposition, disagreement -2: moderate opposition, "
-3. strong opposition, "
__1. The Jews should make sincere efforts to rid themselves of their con- spicuous and irritating faults, if they really want to stop being per- secuted.
2. War shows up the fact that the Jews are not patriotic or willing to make sacrifices for their country.
3? It would hurt the business of a large concern if it had too many Jewish employees.
? __4? __5?
__6. _ _ 7?
__8. __9?
ro.
__II.
__I2.
__I3. __I4.
__I5.
I6.
_ _ I7.
__IS. __Ig.
__2o.
__2I.
__22.
__23.
There is something different and strange about Jews; one never knows what they are thinking or planning, nor what makes them tick. Jews may have moral standards that they apply in their dealings with each other, but with Christians they are unscrupulous, ruthless, and undependable.
The best way to eliminate the Communist menace in this country is to control the Jewish element which guides it.
The trouble with letting Jews into a nice neighborhood is that they gradually give it a typical Jewish atmosphere.
The Jew's first loyalty is to Jewry rather than to his country.
In order to handle the Jewish problem, Gentiles must meet fire with fire and use the same ruthless tactics with the Jews that the Jews use with the Gentiles.
I can hardly imagine myself marrying a Jew.
Jews seem to have an aversion to plain hard work; they tend to be a parasitic element in society by finding easy, nonproductive jobs.
It is not wise for a Christian to be seen too much with Jews, as he might be taken for a Jew, or be looked down upon by his Christian friends.
One general fault of Jews is their overaggressiveness, a strong tendency always to display their Jewish looks, manners, and breeding.
There seems to be some revolutionary streak in the Jewish make-up as shown by the fact that there are so many Jewish Communists and agitators.
One of the first steps to be taken in cleaning up the movies and gen- erally improving the situation in Hollywood is to put an end to Jewish domination there.
Jews should be more concerned with their personal appearance, and not be so dirty and smelly and unkempt.
The Jewish districts in most cities are results of the clannishness and stick-togetherness of Jews.
Most hotels should deny admittance to Jews, as a general rule.
The true Christian can never forgive the Jews for their crucifixion of Christ.
Jewish millionaires may do a certain amount to help their own peo-
ple, but little of their money goes into worthwhile American causes. Jewish leaders should encourage Jews to be more inconspicuous, to keep out of professions and activities already overcrowded with Jews, and to keep out of the public notice.
There is little hope of correcting the racial defects of the Jews, since these defects are simply in their blood.
The Jews keep too much to themselves, instead of taking the proper interest in community problems and good government.
THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
_ _ 24. It would be to the best interests of all if the Jews would form their
own nation and keep more to themselves.
_ _ 25. When Jews create large funds for educational or scientific research
(Rosenwald, Heller, etc. ) it is mainly due to a desire for fame and
public notice rather than a really sincere scientific interest.
_ _ _ 26. On the whole, the Jews have probably contributed less to American
life than any other group.
? THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY
7I
The scale is intended to measure the individual's readiness to support or oppose anti-Semitic ideology as a whole. This ideology consists, according to the conception on which the scale was based, of stereotyped negative opinions describing the Jews as threatening, immoral, and categorically dif- ferent from non-Jews, and of hostile attitudes urging various forms of re- striction, exclusion, and suppression as a means of solving "the Jewish prob- lem. " Anti-Semitism is conceived, then, as a general way of thinking about Jews and Jewish-Gentile relations.
Can one legitimately speak of a readiness in the individual to accept anti- Semitic ideology as a whole? More concretely, can it be expected that people will respond relatively consistently to such varied scale items? These are questions which must be answered empirically. The content and generality of anti-Semitic ideology, and the adequacy with which it is measured by the present scale are indicated below by a statistical analysis of scale results. The validity of the scale will be indicated by correlations of the scale with measures of other, theoretically related, variables, and by analysis of the responses of the two subjects discussed in Chapter II.
C. RESULTS: STATISTICAL ANALYSIS OF THE SCALE
The procedure used for all scales in the present research was to allow six choices of response for each item: slight, moderate, or strong agreement, and the same degrees of disagreement, with no middle or neutral category. Each subject indicated the degree of his agreement by marking +r, +2, or +3, disagreement by -I, -2, or -3.
It seemed likely that three degrees of agreement or disagreement could easily be distinguished by the subjects, and that three degrees gave them the best chance to record clearly felt differences in strength of agreement or disagreement. Certainly the data indicate that all six response categories were used. The "don't know" category has been a source of difficulty and con- troversy in many fields of psychological research ( I2 I). In techniques which permit its use, it tends to be the most frequent choice. Without it, the subject must take a stand one way or the other, although the categories of slight agreement and slight disagreement permit him to be nearly neutral. If a subject is unable to decide, he can, of course, omit the item; but there were never more than 2 to 3 per cent omissions among subjects taking the questionnaire, and never more than I per cent of the group to which it was administered failed to fill it out adequately. Furthermore, the fre- quency with which the "moderate" and "strong" categories were used indi- cates that the items were relatively unambiguous.
The responses were converted into scores by a uniform scoring system. Since higher scores were intended to e~press increasing anti-Semitism, all responses were scored as follows:
? 72
THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
-3 =Ipoint -2 =2 points -I =3points
+I=5points +2 =6points +3 =7points
It will be noted that the scoring skips from 3 to 5 points between - I and +1. Four points represented the hypothetical neutral response, and was assigned when the item was omitted. It probably makes little difference statistically that this scheme was used rather than a six-point one in which +I would receive 4 points. This scheme was used mainly because there seemed to be a greater psychological gap between -I and +I responses than between any other two adjacent responses. It was also convenient in marking the omissions.
A person's scale score is simply the sum of his scores on the single items. For the 52 items the scores can range between 52 points (I point on each item, indicating strong opposition to anti-Semitism) and 364 points (7 points on each item, strong anti-Semitism). When the scale score is divided by 52 we obtain the mean score per item; thus, a total score of 78 can also be stated as a score per item of I. 5.
The initial results obtained with the A-S scale have been published else- where (7I). The present discussion will deal with the second administration of the scale; on this occasion the questionnaire administered contained, in addition to the A-S scale, most of the other techniques which were used in subsequent stages of the research. The questionnaire was administered in April, I944, to a class in Introductory Psychology at the University of Cali- fornia. It was given as a routine class activity in two parts, separated by an interval of one week; Part I (Questionnaire A) of the A-S scale was given in the first session, Part II (Questionnaire S) in the second. The class was de- signed for nonmajors in psychology and was rather heterogeneous with re- spect to major subject and year in school.
In view of a possible sex difference, the questionnaires of men and women were separated for statistical purposes. Due to wartime conditions, however, there were fewer than thirty men in the group, so that no statistics on men? were computed. The data presented here are based on the questionnaires of the I44 women subjects, including nineteen members of major minorities: Jews, Negroes, Chinese, and foreign-born. In all subsequent groups the sta- tistical analysis was limited to the questionnaires of native-born, white, non- Jewish Americans.
1. RELIABILITY
The reliability and related statistical properties of the A-S scale and its subscales are presented in Table 7(III). The total-scale reliability of . 92 meets rigorous statistical standards, especially in view of the fact that Part II was administered a week after Part I. (The reliability of the scale on the
? Range
c
TABLE 7 (III)
RELIABILITY OF THE ANTI-SEMITISM SCALE AND ITS SUBSCALES
Total Part Part SubsQale
Property Scale I II so ST SA ss SI
Reliability
Number of i terns Mean (total) c Mean (odd half) Mean (even half)
S. D. (total )c S. D. (odd half) S. D. (even half)
0 92
52 2. 70
2. 74 2. 66
1. 11 1. 21 1. 12
1. 0-5. 5
0 94
26 2. 74
2. 94 2. 54
1. 21 1. 31 1. 15
1. 0-5. 7
0 91
26 2. 66 2. 86 2. 46
1. 12 1. 19 1. 15
1. 0-5. 8
. 84
12 3. 08 3. 52 2. 65
1. 33 1. 55 1. 30
1. 0-6. 5
0 89
10
2. 59 2. 84 2. 34
1. 23 1. 34 1. 32
1. 0-5. 7
0 89
16 2. 47 2. 48 2. 46
1. 18 1. 21 1. 25
1. 0-5. 8
. 71
8
3. 28 3. 00 3. 55
1. 26 1. 35 1. 45
1. 0-6. 3
0 84
8 2. 55 2. 60 2. 50
1. 24 1. 30 1. 35
1. 0-5. 9
. aThe subscales are abbreviated as follows: subscale "Offensive" (S0), "Threatening" (ST). "Attitudes" (SA),
"Seclusive" (Ss>. "Intrusive" (S ) 1
. bThe reliability of the total scale was obtained by correlating scores on Part I (the half administered first) with scores on Part II (in second half of questionnaire). All other reliabilities are based on correlations between the odd items and the even items. The correlations were corrected by the Spearman-Brown formula to ? give the reliability values in the table.
? CThe values of the means, S. O. 's and ranges are given in terms of mean score per item. If multiplied by the number of items in the scale or subscale in question, they are converted into values representing mean per total scale or subscale.
? 74
THE AUTHORITARIAN PERSONALITY
first group studied, as previously published, was . 98. ) The two parts were equated in terms of the subscales, so that an equal number of items from each subscale appeared in each part. Parts I and II are also roughly equivalent in terms of mean and standard deviation. In view of the high correlation be- tween Parts I and II, as well as their equivalence and their high reliabilities (. 94 and . 91), it would appear that either of them alone provides as good a quantitative measure as does the total scale.
It will be noted that the over-all mean is relatively low ( qo. 2 as compared with a theoretical neutral point of 2o8) and that the obtained range includes extremely low scores but does not include the highest possible scores. The item analysis, as will be seen below, suggests the reason for this: despite our attempt to limit the scale to pseudodemocratic statements numerous items were still too openly or crudely prejudiced and had extremely low means
(below 3. 0). The present group of students was, however, less anti-Semitic on the average than the one studied earlier, the latter having a mean of I 58 and a range of 52-303. The distribution of scores in both cases was fairly symmetrical but platykurtic, with very little clustering of scores around the mean.
The reliabilities of the total scale and of the two parts are almost matched by the high reliabilities of the subscales. Reliabilities of . 8 to ? 9 are very satisfactory even for scales three or four times their length.
With regard to reliability, equivalence of halves, and form of distribution, then, it seems safe to conclude that the A-S scale (as well as the subscales) provides an adequate measuring instrument. It ranks the subjects with a rela- tively small error of measurement along a continuum or dimension. That this dimension may be called general anti-Semitism must still be demonstrated by the data on item analysis and validity which follow. No claim is made that the dimension is "pure" or homogeneous. To the extent that the scale is valid, it provides a measure of anti-Semitism in most of its generality and complexity. More specifically, it may be claimed that the higher an indi- vidual's score, the greater his acceptance of anti-Semitic propaganda and the greater his disposition to engage in anti-Semitic accusations and programs of one form or another.
2. INTERCORREL A TIONS OF T H E SUBSCALES
The above reliability data indicate that people are relatively consistent in their responses to the A-S scale and to the individual subscales dealing with relatively specific kinds of imagery and attitudes. Correlations among the subscales are shown in Table 8(III).
Intercorrelations of ? 74 to . 85 are of considerable significance. The fact that they involve subscales dealing with so great a variety of opinions and attitudes is an important source of support for the hypothesis that anti-
? Subscale
"Offensive" "Threatening" "Attitudes" "Intrus ive?
"Threatening" ? Attitudes"
. 85 . 83 . 84
? seclusive" . 75
. 74 . 74
THE STUDY OF ANTI-SEMITIC IDEOLOGY TABLE 8 (III)
INI'ERCORREIATIONSa OF THE A-8 SUBSCALES
75
Total A-S
92 . 93 . 94
aThese are the raw correlation coefficients. If they were corrected for attenuation to give the maximal value theoretically obtainable (with perfectly reliable instruments), they would all be well over . 90.
Semitism is a general frame of mind, a way of viewing Jews and Jewish- Gentile interaction.
