Symbols, Authority and Selling Ideas
Authority is always an interesting topic in Christian discussions. Arizona State Professor of Social Psychology, Robert Cialdini wrote about authority and psychological dynamics in the 1980’s. Among other dynamics, Cialdini found that authority relationships influence buying practices among consumers. When authority figures endorse products, they sell.
The current complementarian/egalitarian discussion has centered around this discussion of authority for a long time. It seems that the authority of God and Scripture are usually assumed in both positions. The real questions arise around the authority of the interpreters or the vested cultural authority [usually in men]. When the latter authority [male cultural authority] carries the day, complementarians rule. When Scriptural interpretive authority outweighs the culture, egalitarianism wins. In some ways, this discussion depends on which authority we choose–culture or good Bible interpreters.
Cialdini saw this almost automatic submission to authority years ago. After World War 2, Yale Psychologist, Stanley Milgram concluded the same almost automatic submission to vested authority figures.
