Extensive interest in the authoritarian personality syndrome was piqued by the experience of World War II Nazi domination, and a proliferation of scientific inquiry ensued thereafter. Following an introduction providing a psychoanalytic perspective, this paper attempts to integrate the findings of original thinkers in this area with relevant empirical research of the last two decades. After discussion of possible etiological factors related to the authoritarian's family of origin and environment, attention is turned to the integration of research which has a bearing on the authoritarian personality and marriage. First, the authoritarian's paranoid/schizoid dynamics are discussed in terms of his or her basic manner of relating, then the authoritarian's power orientation to marital relations is discussed, and finally the cycle of privation which keeps the authoritarian mired in unsatisfying relationships is elucidated. The authoritarian's need to cope with unmet dependency needs and shame and how the authoritarian compensates by triumphantly placing emphasis on materialistic things in life are both discussed. It is also shown how the authoritarian defensively constricts awareness of the affective and sensual domains while perpetuating the privative cycle of shame and guilt. A brief section discussed the implications of treatment for the authoritarian personality and the marital dyad. It is concluded that the best approach to treatment would probably be a form of family or marital therapy which would utilize interpretive insight. (LLL)