Social Dominance Orientation, Sociopolitical Attitudes, and Beliefs on Current Political Issues
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Published
May 23, 2026
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Abstract
This study investigates the relationship between social dominance orientation (SDO) and sociopolitical beliefs, fo- cusing on issues such as reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and election security. It also examines the indirect effects of sociodemographic characteristics, including age, gender, religion, race, education, and employment. An online survey was conducted with 587 adults who completed questionnaires on demographic characteristics, social dominance orientation, and current political beliefs. Factor analysis was used to identify key sociopolitical belief factors, and structural equation modeling assessed the relationships between SDO, sociodemographic characteristics, and political beliefs. The analysis revealed four main factors of sociopolitical beliefs: general political issues, women’s/ LGBTQ+ rights, fraud/power, and bias/appeal to emotions. SDO was significantly associated with all four factors, showing negative relationships with general political issues and women’s/LGBTQ+ rights, and positive relationships with fraud/power and bias/appeal to emotions. Sociodemographic characteristics such as age, gender, religion, and education also showed significant associations with SDO and political beliefs. The findings highlight the complex interplay between SDO, sociodemographic characteristics, and sociopolitical beliefs. However, limitations related to sample demographics, recruitment via social media, and the use of a shortened SDO scale should be considered when interpreting the generalizability of findings. Understanding these relationships can inform the design and implemen- tation of social policies aimed at addressing hierarchical social ordering and promoting egalitarian values.
References
References
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Bartlett, M. S. (1951). The effect of standardization on a Chi-square approximation in factor analysis. Biometrika, 38, 337–344.
Bergh, R., Sidanius, J., & Sibley, C. G. (2015). Dimensions of Social Dominance: Their Personality and Socio-political Correlates within a New Zealand Probability Sample. New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 44(2), 25–34.
Budge, S. L., Adelson, J. L., & Howard, K. A. S. (2013). Anxiety and depression in transgender individuals: The roles of transition status, loss, social support, and coping. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 81(3), 545-557. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031774
Craig, S. C., Martinez, M. D., Gainous, J., & Kane, J. G. (2006). Winners, losers, and election context: Voter responses to the 2000 presidential election. Political Research Quarterly, 59(4), 579-592. https://doi.org/10.1177/106591290605900407
Edelson, J., Alduncin, A., Krewson, C., Sieja, J. A., & Uscinski, J. E. (2017). The effect of conspiratorial thinking and motivated reasoning on belief in election fraud. Political Research Quarterly, 70(4), 933-946. https://doi.org/10.1177/10659129177210
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Iyengar, S., & McGuire, W. J. (1993). 7. The Psychology of Group Conflict and the Dynamics of Oppression: A Social Dominance Perspective. Duke University Press.
Jorgensen, T. D., Pornprasertmanit, S., Schoemann, A. M., & Rosseel, Y. (2021). semTools: Useful tools for structural equation modeling. R package version 0.5-4 [Computer software]. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=semTools
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Kaiser, H. F., & Rice, J. (1974). Little jiffy, mark IV. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 34, 111–117.
Mata, J., Ghavami, N., & Wittig, M. A. (2010). Understanding gender differences in early adolescents’ sexual prejudice. Journal of Early Adolescence, 30(1), 50-75. DOI:10.1177/0272431609350925
Matthews, M., Levin, S., & Sidanius, J. (2009). A Longitudinal Test of the Model of Political Conservatism as Motivated Social Cognition. Political Psychology, 30(6), 921–936
O’Connor, B. P. (2023). EFA.dimensions: Exploratory factor analysis functions for assessing dimensionality (0.1.8.1) [Computer software]. https://CRAN.R- project.org/package=EFA.dimensions
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Perez-Arche, H., & Miller, D. J. (2021). What Predicts Attitudes toward Transgender and Nonbinary People? An Exploration of Gender, Authoritarianism, Social Dominance, and Gender Ideology. Sex Roles, 85(3/4), 172–189. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-020-01212-3
Pratto, F. (1999). The Puzzle of Continuing Group Inequality: Piecing Together Psychological, Social, and Cultural Forces in Social Dominance Theory. In M. P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 31, pp. 191–263). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60274-9
Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., Stallworth, L. M., & Malle, B. F. (1994). Social dominance orientation: A personality variable predicting social and political attitudes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(4), 741–763. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.67.4.741
Reed, J. (2006). Gender differences in political attitudes and persuasion. Race, Gender & Class, 13(1/2), 59–69.
Rosseel, Y. (2012). lavaan: An R package for structural equation modeling. Journal of Statistical ` Software, 48, 1–36.
Sidanius, J. (1993). The psychology of group conflict and the dynamics of oppression: A social dominance perspective. In S. Iyengar & W. J. McGuire (Eds.), Explorations in political psychology. (1993-98322-006; pp. 183–219). Duke University Press.
Sidanius, J., & Pratto, F. (1999). Social dominance: An intergroup theory of social hierarchy and oppression (Alkek General, Floor 5 HM131.S5832 1999). Cambridge University Press.
Sidanius, J., Pratto, F., van Laar, C., & Levin, S. (2004). Social Dominance Theory: Its Agenda and Method. Political Psychology, 25(6), 845–880.
Stroumsa, G. G. (2015). The making of the Abrahamic religions in late antiquity (First edition.). Oxford University Press.
Silverstein, A. J., & Stroumsa, G. G. (2018). The Oxford Handbook of the Abrahamic Religions. Oxford University Press.
Tesi, A., Aiello, A., Morselli, D., Giannetti, E., Pierro, A., & Pratto, F. (2019). Which people are willing to maintain their subordinated position? Social dominance orientation as antecedent to compliance to harsh power tactics in a higher education setting. Personality and Individual Differences, 151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2019.04.045
University of Florida Election Lab. (2024). General Election Turnout. Retrieved on 11/26/2024 from: https://election.lab.ufl.edu/2024-general-election-turnout/
Vandenberg, R. J., & Lance, C. E. (2000). A review and synthesis of the measurement invariance literature: Suggestions, practices, and recommendations for organizational research. Organizational Research Methods, 3, 4–70. https://doi.org/10.1177/109442810031002
Van Laar, C., & Sidanius, J. (2001). Social Status and the Academic Achievement Gap: A Social Dominance Perspective. Social Psychology of Education, 4(3/4), 235–258. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011302418327
Wedell, E., & Bravo, A. J. (2022). Synergistic and additive effects of social dominance
orientation and right-wing authoritarianism on attitudes toward socially stigmatized
groups. Current Psychology: A Journal for Diverse Perspectives on Diverse
Psychological Issues, 41(12), 8499–8511. https://doiorg.libproxy.txstate.edu/10.1007/s12144-020-01245-7
Zubielevitch, E., Osborne, D., Milojev, P., & Sibley, C. G. (2023). Social dominance orientation and right-wing authoritarianism across the adult lifespan: An examination of aging and cohort effects. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 124(3), 544–566. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspi0000400
Zwick, W. R., & Velicer, W. F. (1986). Comparison of five rules for determining the number of components to retain. Psychological Bulletin, 99, 432–442. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033- 2909.99.3.432
Barbeitos, G., & Gabriel Modesto, J. (2023). The mediating role of social dominance orientation in the relations between political identity and sexism. Psocial, 9(1), 1–14.
Bartlett, M. S. (1951). The effect of standardization on a Chi-square approximation in factor analysis. Biometrika, 38, 337–344.
Bergh, R., Sidanius, J., & Sibley, C. G. (2015). Dimensions of Social Dominance: Their Personality and Socio-political Correlates within a New Zealand Probability Sample. New Zealand Journal of Psychology, 44(2), 25–34.
Budge, S. L., Adelson, J. L., & Howard, K. A. S. (2013). Anxiety and depression in transgender individuals: The roles of transition status, loss, social support, and coping. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 81(3), 545-557. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031774
Craig, S. C., Martinez, M. D., Gainous, J., & Kane, J. G. (2006). Winners, losers, and election context: Voter responses to the 2000 presidential election. Political Research Quarterly, 59(4), 579-592. https://doi.org/10.1177/106591290605900407
Edelson, J., Alduncin, A., Krewson, C., Sieja, J. A., & Uscinski, J. E. (2017). The effect of conspiratorial thinking and motivated reasoning on belief in election fraud. Political Research Quarterly, 70(4), 933-946. https://doi.org/10.1177/10659129177210
Green, H. H., Andrew Daniller, Scott Keeter and Ted Van. (2023, July 12). 1. Voter turnout, 2018-2022. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2023/07/12/voter-turnout-2018-2022/
Ho, A. K., Sidanius, J., Pratto, F., Levin, S., Thomsen, L., Kteily, N., & Sheehy-Skeffington, J. (2012). Social dominance orientation: Revisiting the structure and function of a variable predicting social and political attitudes. Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin, 38(5), 583–606. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167211432765
Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6, 1–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
Iyengar, S., & McGuire, W. J. (1993). 7. The Psychology of Group Conflict and the Dynamics of Oppression: A Social Dominance Perspective. Duke University Press.
Jorgensen, T. D., Pornprasertmanit, S., Schoemann, A. M., & Rosseel, Y. (2021). semTools: Useful tools for structural equation modeling. R package version 0.5-4 [Computer software]. https://CRAN.R-project.org/package=semTools
Jost, J. T., Glaser, J., Kruglanski, A. W., & Sulloway, F. J. (2003). Political conservatism as motivated social cognition. Psychological Bulletin, 129(3), 339–375. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.129.3.339
Kaiser, H. F., & Rice, J. (1974). Little jiffy, mark IV. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 34, 111–117.
Mata, J., Ghavami, N., & Wittig, M. A. (2010). Understanding gender differences in early adolescents’ sexual prejudice. Journal of Early Adolescence, 30(1), 50-75. DOI:10.1177/0272431609350925
Matthews, M., Levin, S., & Sidanius, J. (2009). A Longitudinal Test of the Model of Political Conservatism as Motivated Social Cognition. Political Psychology, 30(6), 921–936
O’Connor, B. P. (2023). EFA.dimensions: Exploratory factor analysis functions for assessing dimensionality (0.1.8.1) [Computer software]. https://CRAN.R- project.org/package=EFA.dimensions
Pennycook, G., & Rand, D. G. (2021). Examining false beliefs about voter fraud in the wake of the 2020 Presidential Election. The Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.37016/mr-2020-51
Perez-Arche, H., & Miller, D. J. (2021). What Predicts Attitudes toward Transgender and Nonbinary People? An Exploration of Gender, Authoritarianism, Social Dominance, and Gender Ideology. Sex Roles, 85(3/4), 172–189. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-020-01212-3
Pratto, F. (1999). The Puzzle of Continuing Group Inequality: Piecing Together Psychological, Social, and Cultural Forces in Social Dominance Theory. In M. P. Zanna (Ed.), Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 31, pp. 191–263). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0065-2601(08)60274-9
Pratto, F., Sidanius, J., Stallworth, L. M., & Malle, B. F. (1994). Social dominance orientation: A personality variable predicting social and political attitudes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(4), 741–763. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.67.4.741
Reed, J. (2006). Gender differences in political attitudes and persuasion. Race, Gender & Class, 13(1/2), 59–69.
Rosseel, Y. (2012). lavaan: An R package for structural equation modeling. Journal of Statistical ` Software, 48, 1–36.
Sidanius, J. (1993). The psychology of group conflict and the dynamics of oppression: A social dominance perspective. In S. Iyengar & W. J. McGuire (Eds.), Explorations in political psychology. (1993-98322-006; pp. 183–219). Duke University Press.
Sidanius, J., & Pratto, F. (1999). Social dominance: An intergroup theory of social hierarchy and oppression (Alkek General, Floor 5 HM131.S5832 1999). Cambridge University Press.
Sidanius, J., Pratto, F., van Laar, C., & Levin, S. (2004). Social Dominance Theory: Its Agenda and Method. Political Psychology, 25(6), 845–880.
Stroumsa, G. G. (2015). The making of the Abrahamic religions in late antiquity (First edition.). Oxford University Press.
Silverstein, A. J., & Stroumsa, G. G. (2018). The Oxford Handbook of the Abrahamic Religions. Oxford University Press.
Tesi, A., Aiello, A., Morselli, D., Giannetti, E., Pierro, A., & Pratto, F. (2019). Which people are willing to maintain their subordinated position? Social dominance orientation as antecedent to compliance to harsh power tactics in a higher education setting. Personality and Individual Differences, 151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2019.04.045
University of Florida Election Lab. (2024). General Election Turnout. Retrieved on 11/26/2024 from: https://election.lab.ufl.edu/2024-general-election-turnout/
Vandenberg, R. J., & Lance, C. E. (2000). A review and synthesis of the measurement invariance literature: Suggestions, practices, and recommendations for organizational research. Organizational Research Methods, 3, 4–70. https://doi.org/10.1177/109442810031002
Van Laar, C., & Sidanius, J. (2001). Social Status and the Academic Achievement Gap: A Social Dominance Perspective. Social Psychology of Education, 4(3/4), 235–258. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1011302418327
Wedell, E., & Bravo, A. J. (2022). Synergistic and additive effects of social dominance
orientation and right-wing authoritarianism on attitudes toward socially stigmatized
groups. Current Psychology: A Journal for Diverse Perspectives on Diverse
Psychological Issues, 41(12), 8499–8511. https://doiorg.libproxy.txstate.edu/10.1007/s12144-020-01245-7
Zubielevitch, E., Osborne, D., Milojev, P., & Sibley, C. G. (2023). Social dominance orientation and right-wing authoritarianism across the adult lifespan: An examination of aging and cohort effects. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 124(3), 544–566. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspi0000400
Zwick, W. R., & Velicer, W. F. (1986). Comparison of five rules for determining the number of components to retain. Psychological Bulletin, 99, 432–442. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033- 2909.99.3.432
Article Details
Keywords:
social dominance orientation (SDO), hierarchal social ordering, equality, sociopolitical beliefs, sociopolitical attitudes, voter participation
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Articles
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How to Cite
Schmiedehaus, E., Rogers, M. L., Dailey, S., Lupo, A., Cordaro, M., Deason, R., & Howard, K. (2026). Social Dominance Orientation, Sociopolitical Attitudes, and Beliefs on Current Political Issues. Graduate Student Journal of Psychology, 26. https://doi.org/10.52214/gsjp.v26i.13944