Social Dominance Orientation and System Legitimacy Across Political Change

Abstract: Prior research suggests that the association between social dominance orientation (SDO) and perceived system legitimacy depends on the alignment between individuals’ ideological preferences and the sociopolitical context. We tested this proposition in a two-wave longitudinal study conducted before and after the 2024 East German state elections in Thuringia, Saxony, and Brandenburg in a political context marked by a normative shift in a more antiegalitarian direction. Multilevel analyses revealed that the association between SDO and system legitimacy became significantly more positive following the elections, while overall legitimacy remained unchanged. These findings support an ideological-fit account of system legitimacy, showing that the relationship between ideological preferences and legitimacy judgments depends on their alignment with the surrounding sociopolitical context.