Who Is More Prone To Believing Conspiracies?

Conspiracy theories, such as alien contact, the assassination of John F. Kennedy, genetically modified foods, and global warming, are prevalent among the American population. A 2017 analysis by the University of Oxford found that over a quarter of the American population believes in conspiracies behind many things in the world. People can be prone to believing in conspiracy theories due to a combination of personality traits and motivations, including relying strongly on intuition, feeling antagonism, and superiority. New research by Josh Hart, associate professor of psychology, suggests that people with certain personality traits and cognitive styles are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories.

One 2018 study identified common characteristics common to people who are more susceptible to conspiracies, such as being more suspicious, untrusting, and prone to misinformation. Despite hundreds of studies examining belief in conspiracy theories, it is still unclear who demographically is most likely to believe such theories. Some conspiracy theories, such as the belief that Earth is flat or the moon landing was faked by the government, are laughable and harmless. Others, such as the psychological (dark triad, propensity to share false information online) and non-partisan/ideological political (populism, Manicheanism,) factors, contribute to this belief.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, misinformation and baseless theories have become more prevalent. People who are antagonistic, exploitative, and generally disagreeable are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories. Prior research suggests several predictors of susceptibility to conspiracy theories, including narcissistic personality traits (grandiosity). The approach to patients with conspiracy beliefs should be similar to dealing with psychotic disorders.