A new study published in Personality and Individual Differences provides evidence that conspiracy theories about COVID-19 can have a negative personal impact on individuals who adhere to such beliefs. The research indicates that COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs predict heightened levels of mental distress.
“Conspiracy theories have been increasingly prevalent during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the mental health crisis that was prompted by COVID-19, we wondered whether the increase in conspiracy beliefs may be connected to the decrease in mental health,” said study author Talia Leibovitz, a masters candidate in clinical psychology at the University of Toronto, Scarborough.
The researchers used Amazon’s Mechanical Turk platform to survey 797 Canadian and U.S. residents in April 2020. About half of the participants were surveyed again in May 2020. As part of the surveys, the participants were asked whether or not they agreed with conspiratorial statements about the origins of the novel coronavirus, such as “COVID is a bioweapon” and “COVID is a way to manage overpopulation.”
“Approximately 50% of participants in our study believed at least one conspiracy theory about COVID-19,” Leibovitz noted.
The researchers found some evidence that these beliefs were linked to negative mental health outcomes. Those who reported believing in COVID-19 conspiracy theories in the first survey tended to have heightened levels of anxiety one month later.
“Conspiracy theories often develop as a way to cope with the uncertainty and uncontrollability of threatening situations. However, believing conspiracy theories was actually associated with greater feelings of anxiety in our study,” Leibovitz told PsyPost.
Belief in COVID-19 conspiracy theories was also associated with holding negative schemas about oneself and others. In other words, participants who endorsed the conspiracy statements were more likely to agree with phrases such as “I am unloved” and “Other people are hostile.”
But the study — like all research — includes some caveats.
“Although our study found an association between conspiracy theories and greater levels of anxiety, we did not find an association with quality of life. The one-month time period of the study may not have been long enough to detect these changes and future studies could examine a longer follow-up period,” Leibovitz said. “Future studies could also examine conspiracy beliefs in relation to other mental health factors such as mood and interpersonal relationships, as well as how conspiracy beliefs develop and propagate.”
“Other studies have found that conspiracy theories are associated with a decreased likelihood to follow governmental guidelines, such as wearing a mask, social distancing, and receiving a vaccine,” Leibovitz added. “However, our results indicate that conspiracy theories also have a negative impact on the person believing them. Conspiracy theories may be an important target to improve both societal and individual well-being.”
The study, “COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs: Relations with anxiety, quality of life, and schemas“, was authored by Talia Leibovitz, Amanda L. Shamblaw, Rachel Rumas, and Michael W. Best.