Conspiracy Theories

A recent study conducted on undergraduate students in Switzerland found that people who tend to see objects in pictures where there are none are more likely to believe in COVID-19 conspiracy theories and paranormal phenomena. The study, published in i-Perception,...

Two studies in Germany found that endorsement of conspiracy beliefs was linked with higher levels of dispositional anxiety, but not situational anxiety. These individuals were also found to be less tolerant to ambiguity. The research was published in Personality and...

A cognitive bias known as the Dunning-Kruger effect appears to be highly prevalent among people who believe the Earth is flat (flat-earthers), according to new research published in Public Understanding of Science. This means that flat-earthers tend to have lower...

New research provides evidence that social media usage, particularly at higher frequencies, is associated with heightened belief in conspiracy theories. But the relationship between social media use and conspiracy beliefs only exists among people who have a strong conspiratorial mindset....

A new study has found that both Christian nationalism and biblical literalism are independently associated with a greater tendency to believe in conspiracy theories. When people believed in both Christian nationalism and biblical literalism, their distrust of government officials increased...

Since the rise of COVID-19 and the 2020 presidential election, it has become apparent that conspiracy theories play a greater role in society than previously thought, but what makes people likely to fall into conspiracy beliefs? A study published in...

New research provides evidence that a generalized disposition of distrust towards others and society is a central factor contributing to both populist attitudes and conspiratorial mindsets. The findings have been published in Political Psychology.

A study of parents of children aged 5-11 in Italy showed that black-and-white thinking was associated with the tendency to believe in conspiracies. This was in turn associated with a negative attitude towards vaccinating children against COVID-19. The study was...

People who have difficulty managing their emotions are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories, according to new research published in Personality and Individual Differences.

New research indicates that teaching people about scientific reasoning can reduce their susceptibility to conspiratorial beliefs. The new findings have been published in Applied Cognitive Psychology.

Anyone who talks to conspiracy theorists knows that they’re never short on details, or at least “alternative facts.” They have plenty of information, but they insist that it be interpreted in a particular way – the way that feels most...

When it comes to predicting conspiracy beliefs, much of the literature focuses on political partisanship. But new research published in American Politics Research, suggests that there are other more important factors. The national study revealed that anti-social personality traits, anti-establishment orientations,...

A new study published in Social Psychology investigated if there was a relationship between workplace bullying and belief in conspiracy theories. In a two-part study, one part correlational and one part experimental, the findings indicate that when someone is a...

Studies of North Macedonians immediately after their country was renamed and of U.S. residents affected by a series of tornadoes showed that people who felt a loss of control over important events tended to increase their beliefs in conspiracy theories....

The fact that many people hold conspiracy theory beliefs was brought into the spotlight during the COVID-19 pandemic, which raises the question: what makes people vulnerable to misinformation? A study published in Frontiers in Psychology suggests that trusting science is...