The securitarian personality: what really motivates Trump's base and why it matters for the post-Trump era

In: Oxford scholarship online

Abstract

This text identifies the core motivations of Donald Trump's strongest supporters. Previous research suggests that Trump's followers are authoritarians or even fascists-individuals who are comfortable only when a powerful person is controlling their lives and providing direction and certainty in the process. This work advances and empirically supports the thesis that what Trump's base craves is not authority but rather a specific form of security.