Relationships Between Right-Wing Authoritarianism and Spirituality in Japan

Right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) consists of two factors: authoritarianism-the tendency to venerate and submit to established authorities-and conventionalism-the propensity to protect traditional values. By focusing on ancestor and nature worship in Japan, this study highlighted the construct of RWA in terms of two aspects of spirituality: feelings of respect for and connectedness to higher-order entities, and feelings of universality and oneness with others. Study 1 (cross-sectional) indicated that the tendencies of ancestor worship predicted higher levels of authoritarianism, while those of nature worship predicted lower levels of conventionalism, even when controlling for general attitudes toward religious symbols. Study 2 (experimental) showed that while the recollection of spiritual experiences did not directly affect RWA, indirect routes via feelings of spirituality existed. Specifically, the recollection of an ancestor worship experience increased feelings of respect/connectedness for ancestors, which were related to higher levels of authoritarianism, and that of a nature worship experience increased feelings of universality/oneness under nature, which were associated with lower levels of conventionalism. These results provide a more nuanced understanding of RWA through demonstrating that RWA might be specifically associated with these two aspects of spirituality.