Illustration: Liu Rui /GT

The rise of Donald Trump caught people off guard and challenged US liberal values and "political correctness." Leading US scholars and media commentators underestimated Trump's popularity and failed to predict his nomination. When "the worst nightmare" came into reality, the US intellectual community started to feel panic. Some even related the rise of "Trumpism" to fascism.

Robert Kagan, a scholar at the prestigious Brookings Institution, alerted that Trump "is bringing fascism to America" in his recent Washington Post article. The article was soon quoted by the New York Times and the author further argued that "the rise of Trump tracks a growing debate over global fascism."

But Trump has not brought authoritarianism to the US. Instead, political psychologists have consistently argued that around 30 percent of Americans are inherently authoritarian. This personality type is predominantly inherited from one generation to another by an authoritarian parental style.

When mainstream political theories fail to explain Trumpism, scholars have resorted to political psychology. In 1950, Theodor Adorno, Else Frenkel-Brunswik, Daniel Levinson and Nevitt Sanford first theorized the "authoritarian personality" - tendency to be rigid, hierarchical and ethnocentric, with strong desire for security and order.

One striking feature is that authoritarians constantly divide the world into "in-groups" and "out-groups." They are apathetic toward and scapegoat out-groups for their own loss of identity and pride.

Trump's extremist political positions and his followers' behaviors fall well into the authoritarian personality. In her article "The Rise of American Authoritarianism," Vox news commentator Amanda Taub argued that "Trump embodies classic authoritarian leadership style: simple, powerful and punitive," which are exactly what the authoritarian crowds have been waiting for a long time.

The modern social and economic context has triggered the defensive psychic mechanisms of people with authoritarian tendencies. The past decade has seen many periods of turbulence for American people, such as the financial crisis, terrorism, and lost manufacturing jobs. The accumulated and suppressed anger, anxieties and fears of these people, especially the white working class and lower middle class, are desperately crying out for an outlet, and more importantly, an agent - a strong leader. It is not Trump who created the crowd. It is the crowd that chose Trump as their leader.

A "paranoid," "crazy" and "politically incorrect" Trump might be an emotional outlet for American authoritarians who are not satisfied with the status quo. In Facebook and Twitter comments, most Trump supporters are complaining that the current political leaders are weak and the US needs a strong leader.

Growing up with Hollywood movies, the US public deeply believe in invincible superheroes, who can dramatically save the country. Thus, Trump's dramatic personality and exaggerated emotions may well appeal to their mentality.

Labeling authoritarians as "fascists" can only make them more aggressive and furious. It is dangerous to associate Trump and his supporters with Hitler and fascism, particularly on mass media. It may create more fears and hatred among them toward out-groups. Since authoritarian supporters have already regarded Trump as the only leader, any attack on Trump would be perceived as an assault to his supporters.

Any further triggering events such as terrorist attacks and economic downturns are likely to push more people toward an authoritarian leader, who pledges to offer the immediate restoration of security and order.

A market-oriented media and over-commercialized reporting style have transformed the way how US public perceive political news. The US media are cutting their budget and reducing coverage on low-profit international news. Thus the general public either become indifferent and ignorant, or have stereotyped views toward other countries.

Lack of knowledge may lead audience to a simple conclusion to perceive other countries either as "friends" (in-groups) or "enemies" (out-groups). This black-and-white perception fans extremist thoughts and policy solutions. As a result, US authoritarians' foreign policy tends to either eradicate threats and enemies by violence (military intervention) or alienate them from the rest of the international community (embargo and economic sanctions). When this logic is applied to domestic politics, it becomes gun possession (violence) and racial discrimination (alienation).

Moreover, the public has become more likely to turn to biased sources. According to a recent Pew survey, 62 percent American adults use social media for news. Among them, 64 percent use only one website - mostly Facebook. On social media, people tend to only pay attention to headlines and quickly rush into conclusions and emotions. This over-simplified perception could easily drive people into hatred of other countries or races.

Angers and fears have been amplified by the market-oriented media, which are savvy for eye-catching and emotional negative news. The media have spent enormous resources on Trump, particularly his hate-filled and extremist remarks, prompting an unprecedented level of coverage.

Even an empty Trump podium could have more air time than other presidential candidates. The commercial profits have distorted the US media environment and ethics into a vicious cycle - no matter how much the media hate and criticize Trump, they cannot stop covering his negative views. Constant fears and anger about illegal immigration, eroding social cohesion and a stagnant economy are driving US authoritarians toward leaders such as Trump.

No matter whether he is elected or not in November, as the Vox article pointed out, "Donald Trump could be just the first of many Trumps in American politics."

The author is a consultant at the United Nations Headquarter in New York. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn Follow us on Twitter @GTopinion