Authoritarianism, Social Dominance, and Prejudice as Predictors of Support for Comprehensive Sexuality Education

Abstract

Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) offers broad benefits for young people’s wellbeing, yet public support for its implementation remains contested. Although previous studies have looked at cultural and demographic resistance, little is known about the relationship between psychological underpinnings, including Social Dominance Orientation (SDO), RightWing Authoritarianism (RWA), Prejudice, and support for CSE. This study addresses that gap by investigating how these ideological dispositions predict general and specific support for CSE. 1003 participants' cross-sectional data was examined. This data was gathered from The Psychology Political Behaviour Studies' 2024 Pre-Election edition, which was administered to a nationally representative sample of US adults. Results revealed that both RWA and Generalized Prejudice consistently predicted lower support for CSE, whereas SDO did not significantly contribute when modelled alongside the other variables. Sub-facet analyses from SDO showed that Anti-Egalitarianism predicted lower support, while Dominance was unexpectedly related to higher support. Among RWA facets, only Conventionalism predicted lower support for specific CSE content. Several Prejudice subdimensions, namely Homophobia, Racism, and Transphobia, were negatively associated with CSE support, while Sexism and Xenophobia were not. These findings highlight the nuanced role of ideological beliefs in shaping support for CSE. Understanding these predictors can inform more targeted communication strategies and policy design. The study contributes to theoretical debates on authoritarianism and prejudice, while offering practical insights into addressing resistance to inclusive sex education.