[Authoritarianism becomes respectable in Germany: A risk factor for condoning physical violence toward children?].

Authoritarianism becomes respectable in Germany: A risk factor for condoning physical violence toward children? Abstract.

Objective

Authoritarianism denotes aggressive behavior toward subordinates, submission to authorities, and conventionalism. Authoritarianism is assumed to be a central factor in the emergence of right-wing extremist ideology. Horkheimer described a close relationship between authoritarianism and the use of physical violence as a disciplinary method. Against the background of the current increase in right-wing extremist ideologies in Germany, which manifests itself in both social and political realms, this study examines the association between authoritarian and right-wing extremist ideology and the affirmation of corporal punishment as a disciplinary method. Method: We performed a cross-sectional study on a representative sample of the German population (N = 2,524).

Results

44.5 % of the participants supported corporal punishment. When respondents reported authoritarian and right-wing extremist attitudes, we discovered an increased affirmation of physical violence as a disciplinary method. Regarding party preference, participants who stated that they preferred the right-wing Alternative for Germany Party (AfD) showed the highest rate of supporting corporal punishment.

Conclusions

The results presented indicate that the condoning of corporal punishment is still very widespread in Germany, and that the children of parents with authoritarian and right-wing extremist attitudes comprise a risk group for physical violence. Increased social awareness of these risks is necessary in light of the current increase of right-wing ideologies.