Personality and society IV, in the form of an edited book, is the result of the research project ”Existential Fear as an Impact Factor on Social Choice”. Further research investigated citizens’ motives for disposition towards particular political leaders. The research identified as the basic motive ‘fear for one's continued existence’, which has been manipulated through multiple ethnic conflicts. This widespread feeling of basic insecurity was identified as the key factor that has ensured the dominance of group (ethnic) identity over individual identities.
Research conducted within this new study analysed fear for one's continued existence from different perspectives. Firstly, previous research into the personality traits preferred by the respondents in a politician was reproduced, with the aim of verifying their temporal stability and their connections with social events of that period. The personality traits preferred in a politician were correlated with the self-reported personality traits of voters, as well as with their ethnic and religious identities. The study examined, through content analysis, the likelihood of the school system indirectly encouraging an emphasis on ethno-religious identity as a primary identification. Finally, the study examined the relationship between ethnic attachment, ethnic openness, and religiosity.