Political Science Publications
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
3-26-2019
Journal
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Politics and Religion
URL with Digital Object Identifier
https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228637.013.824
Abstract
Individual differences in personality, religiosity, and political dispositions often are explained in conjunction with one another. Though the religious and political may share common themes of meaning-making, group identity, and societal organization, personality also influences these orientations. Specifically, the Big Five traits (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, emotional stability) and authoritarianism demonstrate consistent relationships with religious/ political beliefs and behaviors. Personality is often thought of as the first mover to develop with an individual before exposure to the other two domains, leading to a conceptual influence model of: personality → religiosity → politics. Using longitudinal studies and genetically informed samples, however, some scholars suggest that these dispositions influence one another and could develop concurrently within individuals. Examining the measured boundaries and relationships between the three domains suggests these dispositions comprise an individual’s personhood, and the varied expression of traits, beliefs, and behaviors are somewhat dependent on culture and context.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Citation of this paper:
Friesen, Amanda. 2019. “Personality, Politics, and Religion.” In Oxford Encyclopedia of Politics & Religion, Paul A. Djupe and Mark Rozell, eds. New York and Oxford: Oxford University Press.
