Intriguing effect of conspiracy thinking revealed in new study

New research published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin reveals that when people believe in widespread conspiracies, they are less likely to attribute social inequalities to the personal failings of disadvantaged groups. Instead, these individuals tend to view societal disparities as a result of external factors and are more critical of privileged groups. This shift in perspective is linked to a rejection of the idea that success is solely based on individual merit.

A team of psychologists became interested in understanding why conspiracy beliefs are more common among people in disadvantaged groups. Previous research has shown that individuals from ethnic minorities, those with less education, and those with lower incomes are more likely to endorse conspiracy theories. Some experts have suggested that these beliefs might be a way for people in difficult situations to make sense of their struggles.

However, it was not known whether conspiracy beliefs actually change how disadvantaged people perceive their own group’s situation compared to more advantaged groups. The researcher behind the new study wanted to explore if a general tendency to believe in conspiracies affects how people explain inequalities between social groups, and how they feel about different groups in society.

To investigate this, the researchers conducted a series of five studies. The first study involved over a thousand participants from the French general population. These participants completed questionnaires measuring their general belief in conspiracies, their belief in meritocracy (the idea that success is based on individual talent and effort), and their attitudes toward both high-status groups (like the wealthy) and low-status groups (like the unemployed). The researchers also asked participants to rate their own socioeconomic status.

In the subsequent four studies, the researchers used a different approach. They created a fictional society called “Vlurville” and asked participants to imagine they were citizens of this society, belonging to a disadvantaged group called the “Tsocutas.” Participants were also told about a privileged group in Vlurville called the “Thelawys.” In these studies, the researchers manipulated the participants’ view of Vlurville.

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Some participants were given a description of Vlurville that suggested it was heavily influenced by secret, powerful groups engaging in conspiracies. Others read a description suggesting Vlurville was transparent and trustworthy, with no credible conspiracies. This manipulation was designed to influence participants to adopt either a high or low “conspiracy mentality.”

After reading these descriptions and imagining themselves as members of the disadvantaged group, participants answered questions about their beliefs in meritocracy, their explanations for why the disadvantaged group was poor and the privileged group was wealthy, and their feelings toward both groups. In one of these studies, instead of manipulating conspiracy mentality, researchers directly manipulated the belief in meritocracy, to further understand the relationship between these beliefs and perceptions of inequality.

The results from the first study showed that people who scored higher on general conspiracy thinking were less likely to believe in meritocracy. They were also more likely to identify as being in a lower socioeconomic group. However, in this study, conspiracy thinking was not directly linked to attitudes toward either high-status or low-status groups.

The experimental studies in the fictional society provided further insights. When participants were encouraged to adopt a “high conspiracy mentality” view of Vlurville, they were less likely to attribute the poverty of their disadvantaged group to internal factors like lack of effort or talent. They were also less likely to attribute the wealth of the privileged group to internal factors like hard work or talent. This effect was explained by a decrease in their belief in meritocracy. In other words, adopting a conspiracy-oriented view made people reject the idea that social status is determined by individual merit, leading them to see inequalities as less about individual failings and successes.

Interestingly, the researchers found that adopting a conspiracy mentality primarily affected attitudes toward the privileged group. Participants with a “high conspiracy mentality” showed more negative attitudes toward the privileged “Thelawys” group. While there was some evidence that conspiracy thinking might lead to slightly more positive attitudes toward the disadvantaged “Tsocutas” group in one study, this finding was not consistent across all studies.

It appears that conspiracy thinking, in this context, mainly serves to worsen the perception of advantaged groups rather than improve the perception of disadvantaged groups. Manipulating meritocracy beliefs directly had a similar effect, strengthening the idea that meritocracy beliefs play a key role in shaping these perceptions.

As with all research, there are some caveats to consider. For instance, the research focused on economic inequalities. It would be valuable to explore whether similar patterns are found for other types of group inequalities, such as those based on race or gender. The experimental studies were also conducted in a fictional setting, and future research could investigate these effects in real-world situations and over longer periods.

Despite these limitations, the research suggests that conspiracy beliefs may offer a way for people in disadvantaged groups to challenge the idea that their situation is due to their own shortcomings. By reducing belief in meritocracy, conspiracy thinking makes people less likely to attribute inequality to individual factors and more likely to be critical of privileged groups. While conspiracy beliefs are often seen as problematic, this study indicates they might also serve a social function by helping disadvantaged individuals question the fairness of the social system, primarily by focusing on the perceived flaws and potential wrongdoings of advantaged groups.

The study, “Conspiracy Beliefs and the Perception of Intergroup Inequalities,” was authored by Kenzo Nera, Karen M. Douglas, Paul Bertin, Sylvain Delouvée, and Olivier Klein.