Studies of authoritarian personalities have provided considerable insight into the conflicting political factions of “Conservatives” and “Liberals.” There also appear to be identifiable factions within these factions, with their own distinguishable value priorities. Thus, the major political political factions themselves experience internal conflict.

Almost 12 years ago, I published an essay about Machiavelli’s statements concerning political parties. I thought at the time that his observations were the most insightful I’d come across. Since then, I’ve discovered that Cicero made similar observations about political factions in the Roman Republic. And I think I see similar political groupings in modern republics. What’s behind this social phenomenon? I believe recent discoveries in political psychology provide an answer.

Political psychologists have found that there isn't just one authoritarian political orientation, as once thought. There are two. Witness the Presidential campaigns of Ted Cruz and Donald Trump.