Drivers of Revisionist WWII History in Europe: Right-wing Authoritarianism, Social Dominance Orientation and Antisemitism

Europe has recently experienced democratic backsliding, and increased support for far right parties with exclusionary agendas and ‘strong’ leaders. Abundant literature examines why citizens are increasingly flocking to these parties, with recent studies highlighting authoritarian nostalgia as a significant predictor of their support. Building on this research, we are interested in how individuals in Western Europe perceive the past of WWII, how much they ‘revise’ history, and which individuals are more likely to engage in re-elaboration of history. Focus so far has largely been on the national narrative and how countries as a whole understand history, but less is known about within country differences of historical re-elaboration. Which individuals are more likely to see their country as responsible for atrocities during the WWII and which are more likely to understand it as a victim? We are particularly interested in examining how personality traits, such as social dominance orientation (SDO) and right-wing authoritarianism (RWA), mediated by antisemitism, affect citizens’ perceptions of history. We show that SDO individuals are more likely to justify or excuse collaboration with Nazis, while RWA individuals are more likely to perceive their country nationals as heroes in the war. Additionally, we find that antisemitism is a strong independent predictor of historical revisionism but that it also serves as a mediator between SDO/RWA and attitudes toward historical perceptions. Existing research already shows the dangers of authoritarian nostalgia among citizens, this paper takes a step further by identifying which individuals are more likely to engage in authoritarian nostalgia and examining the specific ways in which it manifests.