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Science vs. Conspiracy-Theory about Covid-19: Need for Cognition and Openness to Experience Increase Belief in Conspiracy-Theoretical Postings in Social Media
Ozimek, P.; Nettersheim, M.; Rohmann, E.; Bierhoff, H.-W. Science vs. Conspiracy Theory about COVID-19: Need for Cognition and Openness to Experience Increased Belief in Conspiracy-Theoretical Postings on Social Media. Behav. Sci.2022, 12, 435.
Ozimek, P.; Nettersheim, M.; Rohmann, E.; Bierhoff, H.-W. Science vs. Conspiracy Theory about COVID-19: Need for Cognition and Openness to Experience Increased Belief in Conspiracy-Theoretical Postings on Social Media. Behav. Sci. 2022, 12, 435.
Ozimek, P.; Nettersheim, M.; Rohmann, E.; Bierhoff, H.-W. Science vs. Conspiracy Theory about COVID-19: Need for Cognition and Openness to Experience Increased Belief in Conspiracy-Theoretical Postings on Social Media. Behav. Sci.2022, 12, 435.
Ozimek, P.; Nettersheim, M.; Rohmann, E.; Bierhoff, H.-W. Science vs. Conspiracy Theory about COVID-19: Need for Cognition and Openness to Experience Increased Belief in Conspiracy-Theoretical Postings on Social Media. Behav. Sci. 2022, 12, 435.
Abstract
In the context of Covid-19 virus containment, there is a lack of acceptance of preventive measures in the population. The present work investigated which factors influence the belief in of scientific propositions compared belief in conspiracy theories. The focus here was on the determinants of conspiracy beliefs in the context of Covid-19 related media content. Using an online questionnaire (N = 175), results indicate that scientific compared to conspiracy theoretical media content led to higher acceptance. Furthermore, Need for Cognition (NFC-K), a conspiracy theoretical worldview (CMQ), and openness to experience (NEO-FFI) were positively associated with conspiracy beliefs derived from Facebook postings. In addition, a conspiracy theoretical worldview was negatively associated with belief in scientific media content. Furthermore, agreeableness was unrelated to conspiracy beliefs, although it was positively associated with conspiracy theoretical worldview. The results imply promising persuasion strategies for reducing conspiracy theoretical beliefs and to increase the acceptance of preventive measures.
Keywords
Covid-19; conspiracy theories; Need for Cognition; agreeableness; openness to experience; social media
Subject
Social Sciences, Psychology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
