The New Authoritarianism

 Soliciting Scholarship

Historians and social scientists have frequently examined how social groups are organized into hierarchical systems (Garfield, von Rueden, Hagen, 2019). Authoritarian governance constitutes a form of society where ultimate power is concentrated with societal elites who actively suppress political pluralism. Authoritarian regimes have leveraged themes of state-driven markets, populism, and ultranationalism to transform liberal democracies into autocratic states. The distinguishing practices of these regimes is characterized by the four horsemen of anti-democratic control (Dunbar, 2024):

1. Control of the electoral process
2. Restriction of political opposition
3. Politicizing the judiciary
4. Stifling independent media

Authoritarianism thrives by activating core cultural assumptions that separate traditional social groups from denigrated scapegoat groups; this has been the case historically and remains so today. In Putin’s regime, this involves resurrecting the idea of Mother Russia, while in the United States, the Trump regime focused on “making America great again.” The proliferation of authoritarian movements today is driven by realities that are unique to our age. The issue of authoritarianism is worthy of a renewed scholarship to grapple with this global social problem.

The New Authoritarianism

In the twenty-first century, we are witnessing a “new authoritarianism.” This is reflected by the utilization of Artificial intelligence and social media to curate a “base” followership, and supplanting nation-state leaders with global oligarchs. The curation of messages or “threat framing” revolves around resource scarcity, ecological degradation, and the sociodemographic diversity of societies to maintain social dominance.

The emergent data-driven forms of voter persuasion and social control are unique to our age, influenced by authoritarian elites who are impervious to electoral politics. This new authoritarianism is grounded in data-driven methodology rather than explicit ideology. Its dynamics, rewards, and risks are of great concern, reflecting an evolving form of political control with unique psychological consequences for both the regime’s followers and the denigrated scapegoat groups.

This new authoritarianism reflects the democratic backsliding occurring in several nation-states. As Ekiert (2023) has observed, this regression into autocratic control is seen worldwide. He notes this is characterized by the concentration of executive power, subversion of fair elections, contamination of the judiciary, corporatization of media, and harassment of civil society organizations. Solt (2012) proposed that contemporary authoritarianism is marked by increasing power differentials, a consequence of widening economic disparities. Economic inequality shapes societal attitudes toward individuals and institutions of formal power through a collective resentment of perceived elites. The social psychological bond between the autocrat and their followers has also evolved. The new authoritarian is less likely to brandish a weapon than to appear on a podcast, intertwining political threat with political theatre. The modern technology of social influence—such as social media and logarithmic big data initiatives—has fundamentally shaped the formation of follower attitudes.

The dynamics of twenty-first century authoritarianism constitute a blend of old and new social threats and vulnerabilities. The new authoritarianism is thus a product of massive capital realized through emerging technologies in a new context of globally interconnected and interdependent multicultural societies, controlled by new elites, and the control of media messaging. This evolution of authoritarianism demands renewed study. A broadened form of analysis and expanded scholarship is needed to address the challenge of this global anti-democratic movement. Critical areas of scholarship vital to understanding this emerging manifestation of authoritarianism include:

• The role of AI in shaping authoritarianism. AI amplifies the autocratic message and is a critical issue with no historical precedent.
• The oligarch as the new authoritarian.
• The increasing concentration of wealth among global corporate elites has led to independent political influence unanswerable to electoral processes.
• The emerging billionaire class, including media czars, Silicon Valley CEOs, and hedge fund gurus, now fuel elections and anoint autocrats.
• The social neuroscience of authoritarianism. This emerging area of research focuses on the brain-behavior dynamics related to authoritarianism.
• The cultural basis of authoritarian societies. Political movements must be studied with an understanding of the cultural norms and traditions that support extremist and authoritarian ideologies.
• The reshaping of political parties as cults. Expanding our understanding of radicalized cult subgroups that influence voting behavior and social disruption.
• The collision of ecological catastrophes with authoritarian decision-making. Addressing the responsibility of society to respond to global problems like climate change under authoritarian regimes.
• Examining how economic and resource inequities form the threat framing of authoritarianism.

Solicitation of Contributions

This multi-disciplinary initiative seeks to gather scholarship and critical commentary on the new authoritarianism. In a series of titles to be published by Springer Press, we seek contributions from individuals in the behavioral and social sciences, political theory, cultural studies, economics, and law. It is anticipated that this sustained program of work can shape the dialogue concerning the conflict between autocratic and liberal democratic governance systems. This initiative aims to enhance the critical analysis of the challenges inherent to non-democratic forms of governance during a period of unparalleled global change and challenge.

Read more >> Book one in the series is co-edited by Edward Dunbar and Milton Bennett.

If you are interested in contributing to this project, please contact Dr. Edward Dunbar at edunbar@ucla.edu or Dr. Milton Bennett at milton.bennett@idrinstitute.org