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Extremism of the centre is a term insociology introduced bySeymour Martin Lipset.[1] In his bookPolitical Man (1960) he wrote thatleft-wing extremism has its basis in thelower classes and theworking class, whileright-wing extremism is anchored in theupper classes, andfascism originates in thesocioeconomicmiddle class. He did not define the termfascism further.[2] This analysis was extended by the sociologistTheodor Geigers,[3] who explained the election success of theNazi Party in the early 1930s as areaction from theMittelstand (the section of the economy composed of small and medium-sized businesses), and related his analysis to the contemporary analysis ofextremist and anti-democratic movements of the middle of society. This added a new type to the extremism of the left and right, and explained fascism as a typically middle-class movement.[4]
Jürgen R. Winkler ranks Lipset's theory – together with the work ofRichard Hofstadter(The Pseudo-Conservative Revolt)[5] – as an important theory in the research of right-wing extremism. Similar to the theories ofrelative deprivation, Lipset's theory concerns the belonging of individuals to collectives, their perceptions of their economic and social situation, and their mental state. According to Winkler, Lipset's theory, in which people who see their status as at risk are prone to supporting right-wing extremist movements, is very influential within this research.[6]
Thesocioeconomic analysisHitlers Wähler (1991) byJürgen W. Falter puts themiddle class thesis of the rise of Nazism into perspective. Falter found out that while indeed 40% of Nazi voters came from the middle class, the working class also represented a significant voter group. The most significant social characteristic of a Nazi Party voter wasreligious denomination, with Protestants voting for the Nazis much more than Catholics.[2]
In the 1990s, the term became a political buzzword in Germany, which was used alongside a criticism of society in general. With their positioning in the discussions aboutLeitkultur,multiculturalism,nation andimmigration, the political and economic elites (and not the far-right parties themselves) are said to promote far-right ideas, and this prepares the way to an authoritarian society.[7]
