Psychosocial analysis of Far-Right Populism from the theoretical perspective of social identity
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24310/escpsi.19.1.2026.23448Keywords:
threat, authoritarianism, social identity, leadership, populismAbstract
Social psychology, through the theoretical perspective of social identity, has developed various lines of research to analyze the rise of far-right populist parties (FRPPs). This theoretical perspective is based on the identity leadership model and situes the political actions of these parties in an intergroup context, in which processes of social influence between the leader and followers can be observed. This theory assumes that the rise in popularity of FRPPs is due to the use of narratives and messages that highlight the various types of threats to the nation (ingroup) from certain outgroups (corrupt elites, progressive groups, and minorities). The construction of social reality as fraught with economic and cultural threats would: a) justify these parties' belligerent discourse toward their political rivals, b) conceal the true economic causes of social and economic unrest, and c) propose the implementation of authoritarian methods to govern the nation. Consequently, the role of the construction of social identity content by far-right populist leaders is essential to understanding the communication strategies they use. This work presents the main contributions made from the perspective of social identity in the understanding and analysis of the increased acceptance of the postulates of the PPED.
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