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Byrne A, Martin D, Jones C, Galbraith N, Mercer T. Conspiracy theory beliefs in the adolescent population: A systematic review. J Adolesc 2024. [PMID: 38477391 DOI: 10.1002/jad.12316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 02/28/2024] [Accepted: 03/01/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION While the study of conspiracy theory beliefs is a relatively new research area, there has been a rise in academic interest in recent years. The literature provides evidence of relationships between conspiracy theory beliefs and a range of factors, but the vast majority of studies are limited to adult samples, and it is unclear how such beliefs present in adolescence. METHODS The systematic review was conducted according to the PRISMA-S format. Relevant databases were searched up to February 23, 2023, for quantitative studies related to adolescent conspiracy theory beliefs. RESULTS The six included articles show that conspiracy theory beliefs are present from the start of adolescence, and stable from age 14 upwards, with correlations reported for mistrust and paranoid thinking. Negative relationships were reported for cognitive factors such as ontological confusion, cognitive ability, and actively open-minded thinking. Health-related beliefs correlated with adverse childhood experiences, peer problems, conduct, and sociodemographic factors. Right-wing authoritarianism and anxiety positively correlated with intergroup conspiracy theory beliefs. CONCLUSION While some factors from adult studies are replicated in the review, there are differences between age groups. The age at which conspiracy theory beliefs begin to form indicate developmental aspects of adolescence, and possibly childhood, that require further examination. Cognitive factors show promise for interventions and should be explored further. However, the lack of studies using adolescent populations is an issue that must be resolved for a greater understanding of conspiracy theory beliefs and a move toward effective interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony Byrne
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Health, and Wellbeing, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, UK
| | - David Martin
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Health, and Wellbeing, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, UK
| | - Claire Jones
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Health, and Wellbeing, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, UK
| | - Niall Galbraith
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Health, and Wellbeing, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, UK
| | - Tom Mercer
- School of Psychology, Faculty of Education, Health, and Wellbeing, University of Wolverhampton, Wolverhampton, UK
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Thomas EF, Bird L, O'Donnell A, Osborne D, Buonaiuto E, Yip L, Lizzio-Wilson M, Wenzel M, Skitka L. Do conspiracy beliefs fuel support for reactionary social movements? Effects of misbeliefs on actions to oppose lockdown and to "stop the steal". Br J Soc Psychol 2024. [PMID: 38314917 DOI: 10.1111/bjso.12727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/07/2024]
Abstract
Pundits have speculated that the spread of conspiracies and misinformation (termed "misbeliefs") is leading to a resurgence of right-wing, reactionary movements. However, the current empirical picture regarding the relationship between misbeliefs and collective action is mixed. We help clarify these associations by using two waves of data collected during the COVID-19 Pandemic (in Australia, N = 519, and the United States, N = 510) and democratic elections (in New Zealand N = 603, and the United States N = 609) to examine the effects of misbeliefs on support for reactionary movements (e.g., anti-lockdown protests, Study 1; anti-election protests, Study 2). Results reveal that within-person changes in misbeliefs correlate positively with support for reactionary collective action both directly (Studies 1-2) and indirectly by shaping the legitimacy of the authority (Study 1b). The relationship between misbelief and legitimacy is, however, conditioned by the stance of the authority in question: the association is positive when authorities endorse misbeliefs (Study 1a) and negative when they do not (Study 1b). Thus, the relationship between conspiracy beliefs and action hinges upon the alignment of the content of the conspiracy and the goals of the collective action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma F Thomas
- Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Lucy Bird
- Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | | | | | | | - Lisette Yip
- Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | | | - Michael Wenzel
- Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Linda Skitka
- University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
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Voss U, Schermelleh-Engel K, Hauser L, Holzmann M, Fichtner D, Seifert S, Klimke A, Windmann S. Alike but not the same: Psychological profiles of COVID-19 vaccine skeptics. Health Psychol Open 2024; 11:20551029241248757. [PMID: 38681211 PMCID: PMC11047032 DOI: 10.1177/20551029241248757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/01/2024] Open
Abstract
One of the challenges of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was a widespread skepticism about vaccination. To elucidate the underlying mental and emotional predispositions, we examined a sample of 1428 participants using latent profile analysis (LPA) on selected personality trait variables, mental health status, and measures of irrational beliefs. LPA revealed five distinct profiles: two classes of non-skeptics and three of skeptics. The smaller non-skeptic class reported the highest rates of mental health problems, along with high levels of neuroticism, hostility, interpersonal sensitivity, and external locus of control. The larger non-skeptic class was psychologically well-balanced. Conversely, the skeptic groups shared strong distrust of COVID-19 vaccination but differed in emotional and mental profiles, leading to graded differences in endorsing extreme conspiracy beliefs. This suggests that vaccine skepticism is not solely a result of mental illness or emotional instability; rather extreme skepticism manifests as a nuanced, graded phenomenon contingent on personality traits and conspirational beliefs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ursula Voss
- Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
- VITOS Hochtaunus Psychiatric Hospital, Friedrichsdorf, Germany
| | | | - Leana Hauser
- VITOS Hochtaunus Psychiatric Hospital, Friedrichsdorf, Germany
| | | | - Diana Fichtner
- VITOS Hochtaunus Psychiatric Hospital, Friedrichsdorf, Germany
| | - Sonja Seifert
- VITOS Hochtaunus Psychiatric Hospital, Friedrichsdorf, Germany
| | - Ansgar Klimke
- VITOS Hochtaunus Psychiatric Hospital, Friedrichsdorf, Germany
- Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Dusseldorf, Germany
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Caycho-Rodríguez T, Tomás JM, Yupanqui-Lorenzo DE, Valencia PD, Carbajal-León C, Vilca LW, Ventura-León J, Paredes-Angeles R, Arias Gallegos WL, Reyes-Bossio M, Delgado-Campusano M, Gallegos M, Rojas-Jara C, Polanco-Carrasco R, Cervigni M, Martino P, Lobos-Rivera ME, Moreta-Herrera R, Palacios Segura DA, Samaniego-Pinho A, Buschiazzo Figares A, Puerta-Cortés DX, Camargo A, Torales J, Monge Blanco JA, González P, Smith-Castro V, Petzold-Rodriguez O, Corrales-Reyes IE, Calderón R, Matute Rivera WY, Ferrufino-Borja D, Ceballos-Vásquez P, Muñoz-del-Carpio-Toia A, Palacios J, Burgos-Videla C, Florez León AME, Vergara I, Vega D, Shulmeyer MK, Barria-Asenjo NA, Urrutia Rios HT, Lira Lira AE. Relationship Between Fear of COVID-19, Conspiracy Beliefs About Vaccines and Intention to Vaccinate Against COVID-19: A Cross-National Indirect Effect Model in 13 Latin American Countries. Eval Health Prof 2023; 46:371-383. [PMID: 37439361 PMCID: PMC10345832 DOI: 10.1177/01632787231186621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/14/2023]
Abstract
The present study explored the predictive capacity of fear of COVID-19 on the intention to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and the influence in this relationship of conspiracy beliefs as a possible mediating psychological variable, in 13 Latin American countries. A total of 5779 people recruited through non-probabilistic convenience sampling participated. To collect information, we used the Fear of COVID-19 Scale, Vaccine conspiracy beliefs Scale-COVID-19 and a single item of intention to vaccinate. A full a priori Structural Equation Model was used; whereas, cross-country invariance was performed from increasingly restricted structural models. The results indicated that, fear of COVID-19 positively predicts intention to vaccinate and the presence of conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines. The latter negatively predicted intention to vaccinate against COVID-19. Besides, conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines had an indirect effect on the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and intention to vaccinate against COVID-19 in the 13 countries assessed. Finally, the cross-national similarities of the mediational model among the 13 participating countries are strongly supported. The study is the first to test a cross-national mediational model across variables in a large number of Latin American countries. However, further studies with other countries in other regions of the world are needed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - José M. Tomás
- Department of Methodology for the Behavioral Sciences, Universidad de Valencia, España
| | | | - Pablo D. Valencia
- Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, Tlanepantla de Baz, Mexico
| | - Carlos Carbajal-León
- South American Center for Education and Research in Public Health, Universidad Norbert Wiener, Lima, Peru
| | - Lindsey W. Vilca
- South American Center for Education and Research in Public Health, Universidad Norbert Wiener, Lima, Peru
| | - José Ventura-León
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Privada del Norte, Lima, Peru
| | - Rubí Paredes-Angeles
- CRONICAS Center of Excellence in Chronic Diseases, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru
| | | | - Mario Reyes-Bossio
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas, Lima, Peru
| | | | - Miguel Gallegos
- Programa de Pós-graduação de Psicologia, Pontificia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brasil
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Argentina
| | - Claudio Rojas-Jara
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Departamento de Psicología, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
| | | | - Mauricio Cervigni
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Argentina
- Centro de Investigación en Neurociencias de Rosario, Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Argentina
| | - Pablo Martino
- Laboratorio de Investigaciones en Ciencias del Comportamiento (LICIC), Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de San Luis, San Luis, Argentina
| | - Marlon Elías Lobos-Rivera
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador, San Salvador, El Salvador
| | | | | | - Antonio Samaniego-Pinho
- Carrera de Psicología, Facultad de Filosofía, Universidad Nacional de Asunción, Asunción, Paraguay
| | | | | | - Andrés Camargo
- School of Health and Sport Sciences, Fundación Universitaria del Área Andina, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Julio Torales
- Departamento de Psiquiatría, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Nacional de Asunción, San Lorenzo, Paraguay
| | | | | | - Vanessa Smith-Castro
- Instituto de Investigaciones Psicológicas, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica
| | | | - Ibraín Enrique Corrales-Reyes
- Servicio de Cirugía Maxilofacial, Hospital General Universitario Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Universidad de Ciencias Médicas de Granma, Bayamo, Cuba
| | - Raymundo Calderón
- Colegio Estatal de Psicólogos en Intervención de Jalisco A.C. Guadalajara, Jalisco, México
| | | | - Daniela Ferrufino-Borja
- Facultad de Humanidades, Comunicación y Artes, Universidad Privada de Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Santa Cruz, Bolivia
| | - Paula Ceballos-Vásquez
- Departamento de Enfermería, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
| | - Agueda Muñoz-del-Carpio-Toia
- Vicerrectorado de Investigación, Escuela de Postgrado, Escuela de Medicina Humana, Universidad Católica de Santa María, Arequipa, Perú
| | - Jorge Palacios
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad del Valle de México, Querétaro, México
| | - Carmen Burgos-Videla
- Instituto de Investigación en Ciencias Sociales y Educación, Universidad de Atacama, Copiapó, Chile
| | | | - Ibeth Vergara
- Asociación Panameña de Psicólogos, Ciudad de Panamá, Panamá
- Escuela de Psicología, Universidad Latina de Panamá, Panamá
| | - Diego Vega
- Escuela de Psicologia, Universidad Latina de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Marion K. Shulmeyer
- Facultad de Humanidades, Comunicación y Artes, Universidad Privada de Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Santa Cruz, Bolivia
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Caycho-Rodríguez T, Tomás JM, Vilca LW, Carbajal-León C, Gallegos M, Reyes-Bossio M, Oré-Kovacs N, Muñoz-Del-Carpio-Toia Á, Torales J, Barria-Asenjo NA, Garcia-Cadena CH. Relationship Between Fear of Monkeypox and Intention to be Vaccinated Against Monkeypox in a Peruvian Sample. The Mediating Role of Conspiracy Beliefs About Monkeypox. Eval Health Prof 2023; 46:353-361. [PMID: 37246714 DOI: 10.1177/01632787231180195] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
The present study evaluated the predictive capacity of fear of Monkeypox (MPX) on the intention to be vaccinated against MPX and the influence of conspiracy beliefs as a mediating variable in this relationship in 516 Peruvian sample with an average age of 27.10 years participated. Monkeypox Fear Scale, MPX Conspiracy Beliefs Scale and a single item of intention to be vaccinated against MPX were used. Statistical analyses have included estimation of descriptive statistics for all variables in the model tested and Structural Equation Modeling to predict intention to be vaccinated against monkeypox. It has been found that fear has a positive impact on conspiracy beliefs about MPX and intention to be vaccinated against MPX. Finally, conspiracy beliefs are negatively related to intention to be vaccinated. As for indirect effects, both are statistically significant. The model explains 11.4% of the variance in beliefs and 19.1% in intention to be vaccinated. It is concluded that fear of MPX played an important role, both directly and indirectly, in the intention to be vaccinated against MPX, having conspiratorial beliefs about MPX as a mediating variable. The results have important implications for public health practices aimed at combating doubts about MPX vaccination.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - José M Tomás
- Department of Methodology for the Behavioral Sciences, Universidad de Valencia, Valencia, España
| | - Lindsey W Vilca
- South American Center for Education and Research in Public Health, Universidad Norbert Wiener, Lima, Peru
| | - Carlos Carbajal-León
- South American Center for Education and Research in Public Health, Universidad Norbert Wiener, Lima, Peru
| | - Miguel Gallegos
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Psicologia, Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brasil
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud y del Comportamiento, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Entre Ríos, Argentina
| | - Mario Reyes-Bossio
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas, Lima, Peru
| | - Nicole Oré-Kovacs
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas, Lima, Peru
| | | | - Julio Torales
- Departamento de Psiquiatría, Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Universidad Nacional de Asunción, San Lorenzo, Paraguay
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Peshkovskaya A, Galkin S. Health behavior in Russia during the COVID-19 pandemic. Front Public Health 2023; 11:1276291. [PMID: 37849726 PMCID: PMC10577229 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1276291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023] Open
Abstract
In this article, we report results from a nationwide survey on pandemic-related health behavior in Russia. A total of 2,771 respondents aged 18 to 82 were interviewed between January 21 and March 3, 2021. The survey included questions on perceived vulnerability to coronavirus, prevention-related health behavior, readiness for vaccination, and general awareness about COVID-19. Descriptive data showed that 21.2% of respondents reported high vulnerability to the coronavirus, and 25% expressed fear. Moreover, 38.7% of the surveyed individuals reported low trust in vaccination efficacy, and 57.5% were unwilling to take a vaccine, which was much higher than the official data. Based on the evidence obtained, four types of health behavior during the pandemic were constructed. Rational (29.3%) and denying (28.6%) behaviors prevailed in men, while women were found to more likely behave with a vaccine-hesitant demeanor (35.7%). Educational background affected the proportion of respondents with the denying type of health behavior, who were also of younger age. The rational behavioral type was found to be more common among respondents aged above 50 years and prevailed as well among individuals with university degrees. The middle-aged population of Russia was highly compliant with prevention-related health practices; however, vaccine hesitancy was also high among them. Furthermore, health behaviors varied significantly across the Federal Districts of Russia. We are convinced that our results contribute to existing public health practices and may help improve communication campaigns to cause positive health behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anastasia Peshkovskaya
- Tomsk State University, Tomsk, Russia
- Mental Health Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, Tomsk, Russia
| | - Stanislav Galkin
- Tomsk State University, Tomsk, Russia
- Mental Health Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center, Russian Academy of Sciences, Tomsk, Russia
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Jain L, Bhivandkar S, Baqir H, Shoib S, Nimavat N, Mohan A, Zubair AS, Jawad MY, Muhammed N, Ahmed R, Sachdeva V, Ahmed S. Beyond physical health: the role of psychosocial challenges and stigma in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic-A scoping review. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1180252. [PMID: 37496686 PMCID: PMC10366364 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1180252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 07/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The socio-cultural response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) and the level of adherence to evidence-based guidelines played a crucial role in determining the morbidity and mortality outcomes during the pandemic. This review aims to evaluate the impact of stigma and psycho-socio-cultural challenges on efforts to control the COVID-19 pandemic and to identify ways to mitigate such challenges in future pandemics. Methods Using keywords including COVID-19, coronavirus, stigma, psychosocial challenges, and others, the authors searched seven major databases with a time limitation of July 2021, which yielded 2,038 results. Out of these, 15 papers were included in this review. Results The findings of the review indicated that several psychosocial, socio-economic, and ethno-cultural factors are linked to the transmission and control of COVID-19. The research revealed that stigma and related psychosocial challenges and others, such as anxiety, fear, and stigma-driven social isolation, have resulted in significant mental health problems. Discussion The review underscores the negative impact of stigma on COVID-19 patients, survivors, and the general population. Addressing stigma and psychosocial challenges is crucial to effectively manage the current pandemic and to prevent similar challenges during future public health crises.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lakshit Jain
- Connecticut Valley Hospital, Middletown, CT, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut, Farmington, CT, United States
| | - Siddhi Bhivandkar
- Department of Psychiatry, St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Huma Baqir
- Department of Psychiatry, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, United States
| | - Sheikh Shoib
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawahar Lal Nehru Memorial Hospital, Srinagar, India
| | - Nirav Nimavat
- Dr. Kiran C. Patel Medical College and Research Institute, Bharuch, India
| | - Anmol Mohan
- Department of Medicine, Karachi Medical and Dental College, Karachi, Pakistan
| | | | | | - Nazar Muhammed
- Department of Psychiatry, Cornerstone Family Healthcare, New York, NY, United States
| | - Rizwan Ahmed
- Liaquat College of Medicine and Dentistry, Karachi, Pakistan
| | - Vishi Sachdeva
- Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Bathinda, India
| | - Saeed Ahmed
- Addiction Psychiatry, Rutland Regional Medical Center, Rutland, VT, United States
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Ayub S, Anugwom GO, Basiru T, Sachdeva V, Muhammad N, Bachu A, Trudeau M, Gulati G, Sullivan A, Ahmed S, Jain L. Bridging science and spirituality: the intersection of religion and public health in the COVID-19 pandemic. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1183234. [PMID: 37275970 PMCID: PMC10236196 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1183234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The COVID-19 pandemic has had global impacts on social interactions and religious activities, leading to a complex relationship between religion and public health policies. This article reviews impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on religious activities and beliefs in relation to the spread of the virus, as well as the potential of religious leaders and faith communities in mitigating the impact of the pandemic through public health measures and community engagement. Methods A literature review was conducted using PubMed and Google Scholar, with search terms including "religion," "COVID-19," "pandemic," "coronavirus," and "spirituality." We included English articles published between January 2020 and September 2022, focusing on intersection of religion and COVID-19. Results We identified two main themes emerging, with the selected 32 studies divided in 15 studies focused on the relationship between religious practices, beliefs, and the spread of COVID-19, while 17 studies explored the role of religious leaders and faith communities in coping with and mitigating the impact of COVID-19. Religious activities were found to correlate with virus spread, particularly in early days of the pandemic. The relationship between religiosity and adherence to government guidelines was mixed, with some studies suggesting increased religiosity contributed to misconceptions about the virus and resistance to restrictions. Religious beliefs were also associated with vaccine hesitancy, particularly conservative religious beliefs. On the other hand, religious leaders and communities played a crucial role in adapting to COVID-19 measures, maintaining a sense of belonging, fostering emotional resilience, and upholding compliance with public health measures. The importance of collaboration between religious leaders, institutions, and public health officials in addressing the pandemic was emphasized. Conclusions This review highlights the essential role of religious leaders, faith-based organizations, and faith communities in promoting education, preparedness, and response efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Engaging with religious leaders and communities can improve pandemic control and prevention efforts. Collaboration between religious leaders, governments, and healthcare professionals is necessary to combat vaccine hesitancy and ensure successful COVID-19 vaccination campaigns. The insights from this review can guide future research, policy development, and public health interventions to minimize the impact of the pandemic and improve outcomes for individuals and communities affected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahana Ayub
- Department of Psychiatry, Cornerstone Family Healthcare, Newburgh, NY, United States
| | - Gibson O. Anugwom
- Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Tajudeen Basiru
- Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics, Dell Children's Medical Center, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Vishi Sachdeva
- Adesh Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Bathinda, Punjab, India
| | - Nazar Muhammad
- Department of Psychiatry, Cornerstone Family Healthcare, Newburgh, NY, United States
| | - Anil Bachu
- Baptist Health – UAMS Psychiatry Residency Education Program, North Little Rock, AR, United States
| | - Maxwell Trudeau
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut, Farmington, CT, United States
| | - Gazal Gulati
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut, Farmington, CT, United States
| | | | - Saeed Ahmed
- Department of Psychiatry, Rutland Regional Medical Center, Rutland, VT, United States
| | - Lakshit Jain
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut, Farmington, CT, United States
- Quinnipaic University, Hamden, CT, United States
- Connecticut Valley Hospital, Middletown, CT, United States
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Lu H, Chu H. The Search Between Two Worlds: Motivations for and Consequences of U.S.-Dwelling Chinese's Use of U.S. and Chinese Media for COVID-19 Information. Journal Mass Commun Q 2023; 100:123-144. [PMID: 36814706 PMCID: PMC9936172 DOI: 10.1177/10776990211073951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to inflict damage throughout the world, some minority groups are bearing a disproportionate share of its impacts. We concentrated on one such group, U.S.-dwelling Chinese, who have had to cope with challenges related to acculturation, health, safety, and racism. Recognizing that health information seeking was an essential step in helping maintain and improve health behaviors, we conducted a two-wave longitudinal study (N = 1,284) to examine the various factors predicting U.S.-dwelling Chinese's use of U.S. and Chinese media for COVID-19 information as well as the consequences of their information seeking. Overall, we found that acculturation, accuracy (i.e., information insufficiency) and defense (i.e., conspiratorial beliefs) motivations, trust in media, and perceived information gathering capacity played a key role in explaining information seeking from an intercultural viewpoint, and that the use of U.S. and Chinese media was associated with different health behaviors. These findings contribute to theory and practice in a variety of ways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hang Lu
- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA
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10
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Bam NE. Strategies to address conspiracy beliefs and misinformation on COVID-19 in South Africa: A narrative literature review. Health SA 2022; 27:1851. [PMID: 36483504 PMCID: PMC9723965 DOI: 10.4102/hsag.v27i0.1851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 10/08/2023] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED Conspiracy theories and misinformation have been explored extensively however, strategies to minimise their impact in the context of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines are limited. This study aimed to explore strategies that can be used to reduce the negative effects of conspiracies and misinformation about SARS-CoV-2. This review was carried out based on accessed literature on beliefs in misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic. A comprehensive search of databases, such as Google Scholar, EBSCOhost and African Journals between 2019 and 2022 yielded qualitative and quantitative studies. Two themes emerged, namely underlying motives for conspiracy theories and belief in misinformation about the pandemic and ways to overcome them. The latter included: (1) strengthening critical scanning of information, (2) critical review to address misinformation and (3) establishing approaches for managing conspiracy theories. A proposal is made to address conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 infection. CONTRIBUTION This is believed to be the first review that describes strategies to mitigate belief in conspiracies and misinformation to promote vaccination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nokwanda E Bam
- School of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, North-West University, Mahikeng, South Africa
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11
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Quinn EK, Heer EV, Fazel SS, Peters CE. The Instagram Infodemic Persists: Extreme Content Escapes Platform's Removal Tactics. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw 2022; 25:752-755. [PMID: 36125386 DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2021.0335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
The general cobranding of conspiracy theories and COVID-19 misinformation has been shared at an alarming rate on social media platforms. Instagram has attempted an initiative to flag and/or remove health misinformation and/or disinformation; however, the efficacy of these efforts has been unclear. This study aimed to re-examine 300 posts collected in a previous study evaluating trends in misinformation removal process on Instagram. One hundred eighty-three of 300 original posts remained on the platform, most of which were from the hashtag #hoax. Only one post was flagged for containing false information, despite presence in more than one post. The claims that the platform is removing or flagging misinformation does not align with these findings and amplifies the concern for public safety for Instagram users. Sharing and removal patterns among the 300 posts suggest that conspiracy theorists or those exposed to the inaccurate information may be at higher risk of believing and propagating other unsupported theories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma K Quinn
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Emily V Heer
- Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Sajjad S Fazel
- Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Cheryl E Peters
- School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
- BC Center for Disease Control, Vancouver, Canada
- BC Cancer, Vancouver, Canada
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12
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Rovetta A, Castaldo L. Are We Sure We Fully Understand What an Infodemic Is? A Global Perspective on Infodemiological Problems. JMIRx Med 2022; 3:e36510. [PMID: 36409169 PMCID: PMC9642843 DOI: 10.2196/36510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2022] [Revised: 04/08/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Infodemic is defined as an information epidemic that can lead to engaging in dangerous behavior. Although the most striking manifestations of the latter occurred on social media, some studies show that dismisinformation is significantly influenced by numerous additional factors, both web-based and offline. These include social context, age, education, personal knowledge and beliefs, mood, psychological defense mechanisms, media resonance, and how news and information are presented to the public. Moreover, various incorrect scientific practices related to disclosure, publication, and training can also fuel such a phenomenon. Therefore, in this opinion article, we seek to provide a comprehensive overview of the issues that need to be addressed to bridge the gap between science and the public and build resilience to the infodemic. In particular, we stress that the infodemic cannot be curbed by simply disproving every single false or misleading information since the belief system and the cultural or educational background are chief factors regarding the success of fake news. For this reason, we believe that the process of forming a critical sense should begin with children in schools (ie, when the mind is more receptive to new ways of learning). Furthermore, we also believe that themes such as scientific method and evidence should be at the heart of the university education of a future scientist. Indeed, both the public and scientists must be educated on the concepts of evidence and validity of sources, as well as learning how to dialogue appropriately with each other. Finally, we believe that the scientific publishing process could be greatly improved by paying reviewers for their work and by ceasing to pursue academic success at all costs.
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13
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Caycho-Rodríguez T, Ventura-León J, Valencia PD, Vilca LW, Carbajal-León C, Reyes-Bossio M, White M, Rojas-Jara C, Polanco-Carrasco R, Gallegos M, Cervigni M, Martino P, Palacios DA, Moreta-Herrera R, Samaniego-Pinho A, Lobos Rivera ME, Buschiazzo Figares A, Puerta-Cortés DX, Corrales-Reyes IE, Calderón R, Pinto Tapia B, Arias Gallegos WL, Petzold O. What Is the Support for Conspiracy Beliefs About COVID-19 Vaccines in Latin America? A Prospective Exploratory Study in 13 Countries. Front Psychol 2022; 13:855713. [PMID: 35602688 PMCID: PMC9120924 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.855713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2022] [Accepted: 03/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Conspiracy theories about COVID-19 began to emerge immediately after the first news about the disease and threaten to prolong the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by limiting people's willingness of receiving a life-saving vaccine. In this context, this study aimed to explore the variation of conspiracy beliefs regarding COVID-19 and the vaccine against it in 5779 people living in 13 Latin American countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela) according to sociodemographic variables such as gender, age, educational level and source of information about COVID-19. The study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic between September 15 and October 25, 2021. The Spanish-language COVID-19 Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs Scale (ECCV-COVID) and a sociodemographic survey were used. The results indicate that, in most countries, women, people with a lower educational level and those who receive information about the vaccine and COVID-19 from family/friends are more supportive of conspiracy ideas regarding the COVID-19 vaccine. In the case of age, the results vary by country. The analysis of the responses to each of the questions of the ECCV-COVID reveals that, in general, the countries evaluated are mostly in some degree of disagreement or indecision regarding conspiratorial beliefs about COVID-19 vaccines. The findings could help open further study which could support prevention and treatment efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - José Ventura-León
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Privada del Norte, Lima, Peru
| | - Pablo D Valencia
- Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, Tlalnepantla de Baz, Mexico
| | - Lindsey W Vilca
- South American Center for Education and Research in Public Health, Universidad Norbert Wiener, Lima, Peru
| | | | - Mario Reyes-Bossio
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas, Lima, Peru
| | - Michael White
- Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y Educación, Universidad Peruana Unión, Lima, Peru
| | - Claudio Rojas-Jara
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Departamento de Psicología, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
| | | | - Miguel Gallegos
- Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Departamento de Psicología, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Psicología, Pontificia Universidade Católica de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina
| | - Mauricio Cervigni
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigaciones en Ciencias de la Salud y del Comportamiento, Universidad Adventista del Plata, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Rosario, Argentina
| | - Pablo Martino
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Rosario, Argentina
| | | | | | - Antonio Samaniego-Pinho
- Carrera de Psicología, Facultad de Filosofía, Universidad Nacional de Asunción, Asunción, Paraguay
| | - Marlon Elías Lobos Rivera
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Universidad Tecnológica de El Salvador, San Salvador, El Salvador
| | | | | | - Ibraín Enrique Corrales-Reyes
- Servicio de Cirugía Maxilofacial, Hospital General Universitario Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Universidad de Ciencias Médicas de Granma, Bayamo, Cuba
| | - Raymundo Calderón
- Carrera de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad del Valle de Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Bismarck Pinto Tapia
- Carrera de Psicología, Universidad Católica Boliviana San Pablo, La Paz, Bolivia
| | | | - Olimpia Petzold
- Lone Star College-Conroe Center, Conroe, TX, United States
- Psychosomatic and Psycho-Oncological Research Unit, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium
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14
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Kowalski J, Gawęda Ł. Persecutory beliefs predict adherence to epidemiological safety guidelines over time - a longitudinal study. Psychol Med 2022; 52:1393-1394. [PMID: 32684186 PMCID: PMC7399151 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291720002792] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2020] [Revised: 07/14/2020] [Accepted: 07/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Joachim Kowalski
- Experimental Psychopathology Lab, Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Łukasz Gawęda
- Experimental Psychopathology Lab, Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
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15
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Sidani JE, Hoffman B, Colditz JB, Wolynn R, Hsiao L, Chu KH, Rose JJ, Shensa A, Davis E, Primack B. Discussions and Misinformation About Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems and COVID-19: Qualitative Analysis of Twitter Content. JMIR Form Res 2022; 6:e26335. [PMID: 35311684 PMCID: PMC9009382 DOI: 10.2196/26335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2020] [Revised: 05/14/2021] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Misinformation and conspiracy theories related to COVID-19 and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) are increasing. Some of this may stem from early reports suggesting a lower risk of severe COVID-19 in nicotine users. Additionally, a common conspiracy is that the e-cigarette or vaping product use–associated lung injury (EVALI) outbreak of 2019 was actually an early presentation of COVID-19. This may have important public health ramifications for both COVID-19 control and ENDS use. Objective Twitter is an ideal tool for analyzing real-time public discussions related to both ENDS and COVID-19. This study seeks to collect and classify Twitter messages (“tweets”) related to ENDS and COVID-19 to inform public health messaging. Methods Approximately 2.1 million tweets matching ENDS-related keywords were collected from March 1, 2020, through June 30, 2020, and were then filtered for COVID-19–related keywords, resulting in 67,321 original tweets. A 5% (n=3366) subsample was obtained for human coding using a systematically developed codebook. Tweets were coded for relevance to the topic and four overarching categories. Results A total of 1930 (57.3%) tweets were coded as relevant to the research topic. Half (n=1008, 52.2%) of these discussed a perceived association between ENDS use and COVID-19 susceptibility or severity, with 42.4% (n=818) suggesting that ENDS use is associated with worse COVID-19 symptoms. One-quarter (n=479, 24.8%) of tweets discussed the perceived similarity/dissimilarity of COVID-19 and EVALI, and 13.8% (n=266) discussed ENDS use behavior. Misinformation and conspiracy theories were present throughout all coding categories. Conclusions Discussions about ENDS use and COVID-19 on Twitter frequently highlight concerns about the susceptibility and severity of COVID-19 for ENDS users; however, many contain misinformation and conspiracy theories. Public health messaging should capitalize on these concerns and amplify accurate Twitter messaging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaime E Sidani
- Center for Social Dynamics and Community Health, Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Beth Hoffman
- Center for Social Dynamics and Community Health, Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Jason B Colditz
- Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Riley Wolynn
- Kenneth P Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Lily Hsiao
- Kenneth P Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Kar-Hai Chu
- Center for Social Dynamics and Community Health, Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Public Health, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Jason J Rose
- Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Ariel Shensa
- Department of Health Administration and Public Health, John G Rangos Sr School of Health Sciences, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Esa Davis
- Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Brian Primack
- College of Education and Health Professions, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AZ, United States
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16
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Knobel P, Zhao X, White KM. Do conspiracy theory and mistrust undermine people's intention to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in Austria? J Community Psychol 2022; 50:1269-1281. [PMID: 34551127 PMCID: PMC8656288 DOI: 10.1002/jcop.22714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/07/2021] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Conspiracy theories flourish during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic especially regarding vaccinations. As the vaccination reluctancy in Austria is high, it is important to understand the antecedents of vaccination intention at the preapproval stage of the vaccination process. An online survey was conducted in August 2020 in Austria with 217 primarily younger, female, educated participants. A two-step cluster analysis resulted in a sceptics cluster with a clear antivaccination tendency along with a right-wing political position, lower trust in general vaccines and lower education levels and the reference cluster. A considerable percentage of participants reported their reluctancy to have a COVID-19 vaccine. Although vaccination intention can be explained by attitude and subjective norm, this decision-making process is undermined by underlying factors such as conspiracy ideation and political position. Policy makers and health interventionists should take political background into consideration in efforts to increase vaccine compliance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phil Knobel
- Institute of PsychologyUniversity of KlagenfurtKlagenfurt am WörtherseeAustria
| | - Xiang Zhao
- Institute of PsychologyUniversity of KlagenfurtKlagenfurt am WörtherseeAustria
- School of Law, Psychology and Social WorkÖrebro UniversityÖrebroSweden
| | - Katherine M. White
- School of Psychology and CounsellingQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneAustralia
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17
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Mackey T, Baur C, Eysenbach G. Advancing Infodemiology in a Digital Intensive Era. JMIR Infodemiology 2022; 2:e37115. [PMID: 37113802 PMCID: PMC9987192 DOI: 10.2196/37115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2022] [Indexed: 04/29/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Tim Mackey
- Global Health ProgramDepartment of AnthropologyUniversity of California, San DiegoLa Jolla, CAUnited States
- Global Health Policy and Data InstituteSan Diego, CAUnited States
| | - Cynthia Baur
- Horowitz Center for Health LiteracyUniversity of Maryland School of Public HealthCollege Park, MDUnited States
| | - Gunther Eysenbach
- JMIR PublicationsToronto, ONCanada
- Health Information ScienceUniversity of VictoriaVictoria, BCCanada
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18
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Muric G, Wu Y, Ferrara E. COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy on Social Media: Building a Public Twitter Data Set of Antivaccine Content, Vaccine Misinformation, and Conspiracies. JMIR Public Health Surveill 2021; 7:e30642. [PMID: 34653016 PMCID: PMC8694238 DOI: 10.2196/30642] [Citation(s) in RCA: 102] [Impact Index Per Article: 34.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2021] [Revised: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND False claims about COVID-19 vaccines can undermine public trust in ongoing vaccination campaigns, posing a threat to global public health. Misinformation originating from various sources has been spreading on the web since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Antivaccine activists have also begun to use platforms such as Twitter to promote their views. To properly understand the phenomenon of vaccine hesitancy through the lens of social media, it is of great importance to gather the relevant data. OBJECTIVE In this paper, we describe a data set of Twitter posts and Twitter accounts that publicly exhibit a strong antivaccine stance. The data set is made available to the research community via our AvaxTweets data set GitHub repository. We characterize the collected accounts in terms of prominent hashtags, shared news sources, and most likely political leaning. METHODS We started the ongoing data collection on October 18, 2020, leveraging the Twitter streaming application programming interface (API) to follow a set of specific antivaccine-related keywords. Then, we collected the historical tweets of the set of accounts that engaged in spreading antivaccination narratives between October 2020 and December 2020, leveraging the Academic Track Twitter API. The political leaning of the accounts was estimated by measuring the political bias of the media outlets they shared. RESULTS We gathered two curated Twitter data collections and made them publicly available: (1) a streaming keyword-centered data collection with more than 1.8 million tweets, and (2) a historical account-level data collection with more than 135 million tweets. The accounts engaged in the antivaccination narratives lean to the right (conservative) direction of the political spectrum. The vaccine hesitancy is fueled by misinformation originating from websites with already questionable credibility. CONCLUSIONS The vaccine-related misinformation on social media may exacerbate the levels of vaccine hesitancy, hampering progress toward vaccine-induced herd immunity, and could potentially increase the number of infections related to new COVID-19 variants. For these reasons, understanding vaccine hesitancy through the lens of social media is of paramount importance. Because data access is the first obstacle to attain this goal, we published a data set that can be used in studying antivaccine misinformation on social media and enable a better understanding of vaccine hesitancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Goran Muric
- Information Sciences Institute, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, United States
| | - Yusong Wu
- Information Sciences Institute, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, United States
| | - Emilio Ferrara
- Information Sciences Institute, University of Southern California, Marina del Rey, CA, United States.,Department of Computer Science, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States.,Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
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19
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Child JJ, Hunt A. Beyond the Present-Fault Paradigm: Expanding Mens rea Definitions in the General Part. Oxf J Leg Stud 2021; 42:438-467. [PMID: 35615109 PMCID: PMC9126143 DOI: 10.1093/ojls/gqab033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
This article explores the use of mens rea terms in the criminal general part. We contend the current law fails properly to conceptualise mens rea for a large category of offences, namely bespoke/substantive inchoate offences, attempt, conspiracy, assisting and encouraging, and the general offence of complicity. These offences involve two conduct events: one in the present and one in future. However, current mens rea terms are defined as if applied to the more conventional category of criminal offence which only involves present conduct-a practice which we term the 'present-fault paradigm'. We explore the limits of current mens rea terms, defined for present-conduct targets (circumstances and results), when applied to future-conduct ulterior targets within inchoate and complicity offences. We contend that current mens rea definitions and analysis within the general part are inappropriate for targeting elements related to future conduct/offending, and we suggest more appropriate bases for conceptualising such mens rea.
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Affiliation(s)
- J J Child
- Reader in Criminal Law, Birmingham Law School
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20
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Nazar S, Pieters T. Plandemic Revisited: A Product of Planned Disinformation Amplifying the COVID-19 "infodemic". Front Public Health 2021; 9:649930. [PMID: 34336759 PMCID: PMC8318131 DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.649930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
During the first few months of the COVID-19 pandemic, a 26-min documentary entitled Plandemic was released online and fanatically shared via Twitter and other major social media platforms. The producers of the documentary sought to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories and to discredit scientific experts using a sophisticated disinformation campaign. They set out to accomplish this by coaching citizens toward activism to maximize the speed at which the documentary propagated and decrease positive sentiments toward public health interventions. Applying techniques from social network analysis in conjunction with a formative content analysis of Twitter data, we examined the effectiveness of the Plandemic disinformation campaign as a case study of social engineering during the COVID-19 pandemic. By comparing the Twitter network's community structure and communication patterns before and after the release of the film, we demonstrate the Plandemic campaign to have been effective for two reasons. First, the campaign established a decentralized information sharing network on Twitter by coaching low-reach social media users to mass share the documentary, effectively subverting efforts to gatekeep its misinformation. Second, the campaign amplified negative sentiments regarding vaccination and containment measures among conspiracy theorists. These effects possibly have an indirect impact on the public's willingness to comply with public health measures. Our results show the necessity of further research about sophisticated social experiments such as the Plandemic disinformation campaign and provide important insights for policy-making to combat the spread of health misinformation during public health crises.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahin Nazar
- Descartes Centre, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Toine Pieters
- Freudenthal Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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21
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Gerts D, Shelley CD, Parikh N, Pitts T, Watson Ross C, Fairchild G, Vaquera Chavez NY, Daughton AR. "Thought I'd Share First" and Other Conspiracy Theory Tweets from the COVID-19 Infodemic: Exploratory Study. JMIR Public Health Surveill 2021; 7:e26527. [PMID: 33764882 PMCID: PMC8048710 DOI: 10.2196/26527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Revised: 02/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The COVID-19 outbreak has left many people isolated within their homes; these people are turning to social media for news and social connection, which leaves them vulnerable to believing and sharing misinformation. Health-related misinformation threatens adherence to public health messaging, and monitoring its spread on social media is critical to understanding the evolution of ideas that have potentially negative public health impacts. Objective The aim of this study is to use Twitter data to explore methods to characterize and classify four COVID-19 conspiracy theories and to provide context for each of these conspiracy theories through the first 5 months of the pandemic. Methods We began with a corpus of COVID-19 tweets (approximately 120 million) spanning late January to early May 2020. We first filtered tweets using regular expressions (n=1.8 million) and used random forest classification models to identify tweets related to four conspiracy theories. Our classified data sets were then used in downstream sentiment analysis and dynamic topic modeling to characterize the linguistic features of COVID-19 conspiracy theories as they evolve over time. Results Analysis using model-labeled data was beneficial for increasing the proportion of data matching misinformation indicators. Random forest classifier metrics varied across the four conspiracy theories considered (F1 scores between 0.347 and 0.857); this performance increased as the given conspiracy theory was more narrowly defined. We showed that misinformation tweets demonstrate more negative sentiment when compared to nonmisinformation tweets and that theories evolve over time, incorporating details from unrelated conspiracy theories as well as real-world events. Conclusions Although we focus here on health-related misinformation, this combination of approaches is not specific to public health and is valuable for characterizing misinformation in general, which is an important first step in creating targeted messaging to counteract its spread. Initial messaging should aim to preempt generalized misinformation before it becomes widespread, while later messaging will need to target evolving conspiracy theories and the new facets of each as they become incorporated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dax Gerts
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States
| | - Courtney D Shelley
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States
| | - Nidhi Parikh
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States
| | - Travis Pitts
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States
| | - Chrysm Watson Ross
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States.,Department of Computer Science, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, United States
| | - Geoffrey Fairchild
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States
| | - Nidia Yadria Vaquera Chavez
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States.,Department of Computer Science, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, United States
| | - Ashlynn R Daughton
- Analytics, Intelligence, and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, United States
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22
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Abstract
According to one recent review of the burgeoning interdisciplinary scholarly literature on populism, populism's "relationship with gender issues remains largely understudied" (Abi-Hassan, 2017, 426-427). Of those scholarly treatments that do exist, the lion's share focus on the role of men and masculinity in populist movements. In this essay, I argue scholarly reflection on the relationship of gender and populism should not be limited to this narrow frame. Through a close examination of the complex gender politics of QAnon, a pro-Trump conspiracy movement that burst into the mainstream of U.S. politics and culture with the onset of the global Coronavirus pandemic, I demonstrate that populist deployments of femininity are as rich, complex, and potent as their deployments of masculinity. QAnon, I argue, is a case study in how femininity, particularly feminine identities centered on motherhood and maternal duty, can be mobilized to engage women in populist political projects. Until scholars of populism start asking Cynthia Enloe's famous question, "Where are the women?," in a sustained and rigorous way, phenomena that are integral to populism's functioning will elude us and our understanding of the relationship between gender and populism will remain partial and incomplete (Enloe, 2014).
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23
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Sallam M, Dababseh D, Eid H, Al-Mahzoum K, Al-Haidar A, Taim D, Yaseen A, Ababneh NA, Bakri FG, Mahafzah A. High Rates of COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy and Its Association with Conspiracy Beliefs: A Study in Jordan and Kuwait among Other Arab Countries. Vaccines (Basel) 2021; 9:42. [PMID: 33445581 PMCID: PMC7826844 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines9010042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 359] [Impact Index Per Article: 119.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2020] [Revised: 01/06/2021] [Accepted: 01/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Vaccination could be an effective strategy for slowing the spread of the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Vaccine hesitancy could pose a serious problem for COVID-19 prevention, due to the spread of misinformation surrounding the ongoing pandemic. The aim of this study was to assess the attitudes towards the prospective COVID-19 vaccines among the general public in Jordan, Kuwait and other Arab countries. We also aimed to assess the association between COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and conspiracy beliefs. This study used an online survey distributed in December 2020, with items assessing conspiracies regarding COVID-19's origin and vaccination. Attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccines were assessed using the Vaccine Conspiracy Belief Scale (VCBS), with higher scores indicating a greater belief in vaccine conspiracy. A total of 3414 respondents completed the survey, the majority being residents of Jordan (n = 2173, 63.6%), Kuwait (n = 771, 22.6%) and Saudi Arabia (n = 154, 4.5%). The acceptance rates for COVID-19 and influenza vaccines were 29.4% and 30.9%, respectively. Males, respondents with higher educational levels and those with histories of chronic disease had higher rates of COVID-19 vaccine acceptance. Beliefs that COVID-19 vaccines are intended to inject microchips into recipients and that the vaccines are related to infertility were found in 27.7% and 23.4% of respondents, respectively. Higher VCBS scores were found among females, respondents with lower educational levels and respondents relying on social media platforms as the main source of information. The high rates of vaccine hesitancy in Jordan and Kuwait, among other Arab countries, are alarming. They could hinder the proper control of COVID-19 in the region. The harmful effect of COVID-19 misinformation and conspiracy beliefs was manifested in vaccine hesitancy. This may represent a massive obstacle to the successful control of the pandemic. A reliance on social media as the main source of information about COVID-19 vaccines was associated with vaccine hesitancy. This should alert governments, policy makers and the general public to the importance of vigilant fact checking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Malik Sallam
- Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan;
- Department of Clinical Laboratories and Forensic Medicine, Jordan University Hospital, Amman 11942, Jordan
- Department of Translational Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, 22184 Malmö, Sweden
| | - Deema Dababseh
- Department of Dentistry, Jordan University Hospital, Amman 11942, Jordan;
| | - Huda Eid
- School of Dentistry, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan; (H.E.); (A.A.-H.); (D.T.)
| | | | - Ayat Al-Haidar
- School of Dentistry, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan; (H.E.); (A.A.-H.); (D.T.)
| | - Duaa Taim
- School of Dentistry, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan; (H.E.); (A.A.-H.); (D.T.)
| | - Alaa Yaseen
- School of Science, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan;
| | - Nidaa A. Ababneh
- Cell Therapy Center (CTC), The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan;
| | - Faris G. Bakri
- Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan;
- Department of Internal Medicine, Jordan University Hospital, Amman 11942, Jordan
- Infectious Diseases and Vaccine Center, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan
| | - Azmi Mahafzah
- Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Forensic Medicine, School of Medicine, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan;
- Department of Clinical Laboratories and Forensic Medicine, Jordan University Hospital, Amman 11942, Jordan
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Pickles K, Cvejic E, Nickel B, Copp T, Bonner C, Leask J, Ayre J, Batcup C, Cornell S, Dakin T, Dodd RH, Isautier JMJ, McCaffery KJ. COVID-19 Misinformation Trends in Australia: Prospective Longitudinal National Survey. J Med Internet Res 2021; 23:e23805. [PMID: 33302250 PMCID: PMC7800906 DOI: 10.2196/23805] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2020] [Revised: 10/22/2020] [Accepted: 12/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Misinformation about COVID-19 is common and has been spreading rapidly across the globe through social media platforms and other information systems. Understanding what the public knows about COVID-19 and identifying beliefs based on misinformation can help shape effective public health communications to ensure efforts to reduce viral transmission are not undermined. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and factors associated with COVID-19 misinformation in Australia and their changes over time. METHODS This prospective, longitudinal national survey was completed by adults (18 years and above) across April (n=4362), May (n=1882), and June (n=1369) 2020. RESULTS Stronger agreement with misinformation was associated with younger age, male gender, lower education level, and language other than English spoken at home (P<.01 for all). After controlling for these variables, misinformation beliefs were significantly associated (P<.001) with lower levels of digital health literacy, perceived threat of COVID-19, confidence in government, and trust in scientific institutions. Analyses of specific government-identified misinformation revealed 3 clusters: prevention (associated with male gender and younger age), causation (associated with lower education level and greater social disadvantage), and cure (associated with younger age). Lower institutional trust and greater rejection of official government accounts were associated with stronger agreement with COVID-19 misinformation. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this study highlight important gaps in communication effectiveness, which must be addressed to ensure effective COVID-19 prevention.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Tessa Copp
- The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | | | | | - Julie Ayre
- The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
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25
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Larsen EM, Donaldson KR, Liew M, Mohanty A. Conspiratorial Thinking During COVID-19: The Roles of Paranoia, Delusion-Proneness, and Intolerance of Uncertainty. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:698147. [PMID: 34483993 PMCID: PMC8416269 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.698147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2021] [Accepted: 06/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The COVID-19 global pandemic has left many feeling a sense of profound uncertainty about their world, safety, and livelihood. Sources espousing misinformation and conspiracy theories frequently offer information that can help make sense of this uncertainty. Individuals high in intolerance of uncertainty (IU) may be particularly impacted by the impoverished epistemic environment and may thus be more drawn to conspiratorial thinking (CT). In the present work, we show across 2 studies (N = 519) that COVID-19-specific CT is associated with higher levels of IU as well as delusion-proneness, and paranoia. Furthermore, delusion-proneness and paranoia explained the relationship between IU and CT and emerged as independent partial correlates of CT even when controlling for other facets of schizotypy. In contrast, anxiety did not explain the relationship between IU and CT. Overall, our findings highlight the importance of individual differences in IU, delusion-proneness and paranoia in the development of CT in the context of the acute uncertainty of a global crisis, in which conspiracy theories are more prevalent and salient. Informational intervention designs may benefit from leveraging the body of work demonstrating the efficacy of targeting IU to incite meaningful changes in thinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmett M Larsen
- Neuroscience of Emotion, Cognition, and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States
| | - Kayla R Donaldson
- Neuroscience of Emotion, Cognition, and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States
| | - Megan Liew
- Neuroscience of Emotion, Cognition, and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States
| | - Aprajita Mohanty
- Neuroscience of Emotion, Cognition, and Psychopathology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, United States
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26
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Quinn EK, Fazel SS, Peters CE. The Instagram Infodemic: Cobranding of Conspiracy Theories, Coronavirus Disease 2019 and Authority-Questioning Beliefs. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw 2020; 24:573-577. [PMID: 33395548 DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2020.0663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
The novel coronavirus 2019 pandemic has brought about an overabundance of misinformation concerning the virus (SARS-CoV-2) and the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) it causes spreading rapidly on social media. While some more obviously untrustworthy sources may be easier for social media filters to identify and remove, an early feature was the cobranding of COVID-19 misinformation with other types of misinformation. To examine this, the top 10 Instagram posts (in English) were collected every day for 10 days (April 21-30th, 2020) for each of the hashtags #hoax, #governmentlies, and #plandemic. The #hoax was selected first as it is commonly used in conspiracy theory posts, and #governmentlies because it was the most commonly cotagged with #hoax. For comparison, we selected #plandemic as the most popular cotagged hashtag that was clearly COVID-19-related. This resulted in 300 Instagram posts available for our analysis. We conducted a content analysis by coding the themes contained in the posts, both for the images and the text caption shared by the Instagram users (including hashtags). The broad theme of general mistrust was the most common, including the idea that the government and/or media has fabricated or hidden information pertaining to COVID-19. Conspiracy theories were the second-most frequent theme among posts. Overall, COVID-19 was frequently presented in association with authority-questioning beliefs. Developing an understanding of how the public shares misinformation on COVID-19 alongside conspiracy theories and authority-questioning statements can aid public health officials and policymakers in limiting the spread of potentially life-threatening health misinformation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma K Quinn
- Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Research, Alberta Health Services, Cancer Control Alberta, Calgary, Canada.,CAREX Canada, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada.,School of Health Sciences, University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, Canada
| | - Sajjad S Fazel
- Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Research, Alberta Health Services, Cancer Control Alberta, Calgary, Canada.,CAREX Canada, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Cheryl E Peters
- Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Research, Alberta Health Services, Cancer Control Alberta, Calgary, Canada.,CAREX Canada, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, Canada.,Department of Oncology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
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27
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Kowalski J, Marchlewska M, Molenda Z, Górska P, Gawęda Ł. Adherence to safety and self-isolation guidelines, conspiracy and paranoia-like beliefs during COVID-19 pandemic in Poland - associations and moderators. Psychiatry Res 2020; 294:113540. [PMID: 33142144 PMCID: PMC7590639 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Accepted: 10/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Due to coronavirus pandemic, governments have ordered a nationwide isolation. In this situation, we hypothesised that people holding conspiracy beliefs are less willing to adhere to medical guidelines. Furthermore, we explored what possible factors may modify relationships between conspiracy, paranoia-like beliefs, and adherence to epidemiological guidelines. Also, we examined the prevalence of different coronavirus conspiracy beliefs. METHODS Two independent internet studies. Study 1 used a proportional quota sample that was representative of the population of Poles in terms of gender and settlement size (n=507). Study 2 employed a convenience sample (n=840). RESULTS Coronavirus conspiracy beliefs are negatively related to safety guidelines. Mixed results suggest that paranoia-like beliefs are related negatively to safety guidelines. Prevalence of firmly held coronavirus conspiracy beliefs is rare. Nevertheless, certain percentage of participants agree with conspiracy beliefs at least partially. Coronavirus related anxiety, trust in media, and internal motivation to isolation moderate the relationship between conspiracy beliefs and adherence to safety guidelines. Paranoia-like beliefs partially mediate between boredom and conspiracy beliefs. CONCLUSIONS Conspiracy beliefs concerning coronavirus are present in the population and are negatively related to adherence to safety guidelines. Conspiracy beliefs originate partially from boredom and paranoia proneness. Certain factors - trust in media and internal motivation to isolation - are potentially worthwhile to address to enhance adherence to safety guidelines. Non-probabilistic sampling suggests caution in interpretation of the present findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joachim Kowalski
- Experimental Psychopathology Lab, Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland.
| | - Marta Marchlewska
- Political Cognition Lab, Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Zuzanna Molenda
- Political Cognition Lab, Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Paulina Górska
- Faculty of Psychology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Łukasz Gawęda
- Experimental Psychopathology Lab, Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
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28
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Jutzi CA, Willardt R, Schmid PC, Jonas E. Between Conspiracy Beliefs, Ingroup Bias, and System Justification: How People Use Defense Strategies to Cope With the Threat of COVID-19. Front Psychol 2020; 11:578586. [PMID: 33101147 PMCID: PMC7555435 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.578586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Accepted: 09/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The current situation around coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) portrays a threat to us in several ways: It imposes uncertainty and a lack of control and reminds us of our own mortality. People around the world have reacted to these threats in seemingly unrelated ways: From stockpiling yeast and toilet paper to favoring nationalist ideas or endorsing conspiratorial beliefs. According to the General Process Model of Threat and Defense, the confrontation with a threat - a discrepant experience - makes humans react with both proximal and distal threat responses. While the proximal response manifests in behavioral inhibition that leads to heightened anxious arousal and vigilance, distal responses seek to lower behavioral inhibition and the associated state of anxiety and vigilance through engaging in distal defenses. In the present research, we propose that the reactions to COVID-19 may represent distal defense strategies to the pandemic and, therefore, can be explained and forecasted by the model. Thus, we hypothesized increased perceived COVID-19 threat to lead to a proximal threat response in the form of heightened behavioral inhibition. This, in return, should enhance the use of distal defenses (i.e., several ingroup biases, system justification, and conspiratorial beliefs) overlapping with the reactions observed as a response to COVID-19. This hypothesized mediated effect of increased perceived COVID-19 threat on distal defenses was tested in two preregistered studies: In Study 1 (N = 358), results showed perceived COVID-19 threat to be related to behavioral inhibition and, in turn, to be associated with increased distal defenses (i.e., higher entitativity, control restoration motivation, passive party support). In Study 2 (N = 348), we manipulated COVID-19 threat salience and found results suggesting the distal defenses of ingroup entitativity, system justification, and conspiratorial beliefs to be mediated by the proximal threat response. The results of the present research hint toward a common mechanism through which the seemingly unrelated reactions to COVID-19 can be explained. The results might help to predict future behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic and to design measures to counteract the detrimental effects of the pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara A. Jutzi
- Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
| | - Robin Willardt
- Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
- Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Petra C. Schmid
- Department of Management, Technology, and Economics, ETH Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Eva Jonas
- Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
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29
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Chen X, Zhang SX, Jahanshahi AA, Alvarez-Risco A, Dai H, Li J, Ibarra VG. Belief in a COVID-19 Conspiracy Theory as a Predictor of Mental Health and Well-Being of Health Care Workers in Ecuador: Cross-Sectional Survey Study. JMIR Public Health Surveill 2020. [PMID: 32658859 DOI: 10.1101/2020.05.26.20113258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND During the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, social media platforms have become active sites for the dissemination of conspiracy theories that provide alternative explanations of the cause of the pandemic, such as secret plots by powerful and malicious groups. However, the association of individuals' beliefs in conspiracy theories about COVID-19 with mental health and well-being issues has not been investigated. This association creates an assessable channel to identify and provide assistance to people with mental health and well-being issues during the pandemic. OBJECTIVE Our aim was to provide the first evidence that belief in conspiracy theories regarding the COVID-19 pandemic is a predictor of the mental health and well-being of health care workers. METHODS We conducted a survey of 252 health care workers in Ecuador from April 10 to May 2, 2020. We analyzed the data regarding distress and anxiety caseness with logistic regression and the data regarding life and job satisfaction with linear regression. RESULTS Among the 252 sampled health care workers in Ecuador, 61 (24.2%) believed that the virus was developed intentionally in a lab; 82 (32.5%) experienced psychological distress, and 71 (28.2%) had anxiety disorder. Compared to health care workers who were not sure where the virus originated, those who believed the virus was developed intentionally in a lab were more likely to report psychological distress and anxiety disorder and to have lower levels of job satisfaction and life satisfaction. CONCLUSIONS This paper identifies belief in COVID-19 conspiracy theories as an important predictor of distress, anxiety, and job and life satisfaction among health care workers. This finding will enable mental health services to better target and provide help to mentally vulnerable health care workers during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi Chen
- Business School, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Ningbo, China
| | - Stephen X Zhang
- Faculty of Professions, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi
- CENTRUM Catholica Graduate Business School, Pontifical Universidad Catholica del Peru, Lima, Peru
| | - Aldo Alvarez-Risco
- Facultad de Ciencias Empresariales y Económicas, Universidad de Lima, Lima, Peru
| | - Huiyang Dai
- School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Jizhen Li
- School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
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30
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Chen X, Zhang SX, Jahanshahi AA, Alvarez-Risco A, Dai H, Li J, Ibarra VG. Belief in a COVID-19 Conspiracy Theory as a Predictor of Mental Health and Well-Being of Health Care Workers in Ecuador: Cross-Sectional Survey Study. JMIR Public Health Surveill 2020; 6:e20737. [PMID: 32658859 PMCID: PMC7375774 DOI: 10.2196/20737] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2020] [Revised: 06/27/2020] [Accepted: 07/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background During the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, social media platforms have become active sites for the dissemination of conspiracy theories that provide alternative explanations of the cause of the pandemic, such as secret plots by powerful and malicious groups. However, the association of individuals’ beliefs in conspiracy theories about COVID-19 with mental health and well-being issues has not been investigated. This association creates an assessable channel to identify and provide assistance to people with mental health and well-being issues during the pandemic. Objective Our aim was to provide the first evidence that belief in conspiracy theories regarding the COVID-19 pandemic is a predictor of the mental health and well-being of health care workers. Methods We conducted a survey of 252 health care workers in Ecuador from April 10 to May 2, 2020. We analyzed the data regarding distress and anxiety caseness with logistic regression and the data regarding life and job satisfaction with linear regression. Results Among the 252 sampled health care workers in Ecuador, 61 (24.2%) believed that the virus was developed intentionally in a lab; 82 (32.5%) experienced psychological distress, and 71 (28.2%) had anxiety disorder. Compared to health care workers who were not sure where the virus originated, those who believed the virus was developed intentionally in a lab were more likely to report psychological distress and anxiety disorder and to have lower levels of job satisfaction and life satisfaction. Conclusions This paper identifies belief in COVID-19 conspiracy theories as an important predictor of distress, anxiety, and job and life satisfaction among health care workers. This finding will enable mental health services to better target and provide help to mentally vulnerable health care workers during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi Chen
- Business School, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Ningbo, China
| | - Stephen X Zhang
- Faculty of Professions, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Asghar Afshar Jahanshahi
- CENTRUM Catholica Graduate Business School, Pontifical Universidad Catholica del Peru, Lima, Peru
| | - Aldo Alvarez-Risco
- Facultad de Ciencias Empresariales y Económicas, Universidad de Lima, Lima, Peru
| | - Huiyang Dai
- School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Jizhen Li
- School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
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31
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Olansky E, Mansergh G, Pitts N, Mimiaga MJ, Denson DJ, Landers S, Holman J, Herbst JH. PrEP Awareness in the Context of HIV/AIDS Conspiracy Beliefs Among Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino MSM in Three Urban US Cities. J Homosex 2020; 67:833-843. [PMID: 30633661 DOI: 10.1080/00918369.2018.1557953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
We examined HIV conspiracy beliefs and PrEP awareness in a convenience sample of minority MSM. Participants in three cities completed a behavioral self-assessment on sociodemographics, PrEP awareness, and HIV/AIDS conspiracy beliefs. HIV/AIDS conspiracy beliefs were more common among Black than Latino MSM (58% vs. 42%, p < .05), and among younger men than older men (age 18-29 (50%), 30-39 (22%), 40+ (28%); p < .05). PrEP awareness co-occurred with conspiracy belief less (37%) than with non-belief (63%, p < .05), persisting in multivariable regression (aOR = 0.52, 95% CI = 0.38-0.71). This relationship suggests that current HIV care and prevention messaging is either inaccessible or not credible to some minority subpopulations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Matthew J Mimiaga
- School of Public Health, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | | | | | - Jeremy Holman
- Health Resources in Action, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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32
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Palmer TN. Experimental Non-Violation of the Bell Inequality. Entropy (Basel) 2018; 20:e20050356. [PMID: 33265446 PMCID: PMC7512876 DOI: 10.3390/e20050356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2018] [Revised: 04/24/2018] [Accepted: 05/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
A finite non-classical framework for qubit physics is described that challenges the conclusion that the Bell Inequality has been shown to have been violated experimentally, even approximately. This framework postulates the primacy of a fractal-like ‘invariant set’ geometry IU in cosmological state space, on which the universe evolves deterministically and causally, and from which space-time and the laws of physics in space-time are emergent. Consistent with the assumed primacy of IU, a non-Euclidean (and hence non-classical) metric gp is defined in cosmological state space. Here, p is a large but finite integer (whose inverse may reflect the weakness of gravity). Points that do not lie on IU are necessarily gp-distant from points that do. gp is related to the p-adic metric of number theory. Using number-theoretic properties of spherical triangles, the Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt (CHSH) inequality, whose violation would rule out local realism, is shown to be undefined in this framework. Moreover, the CHSH-like inequalities violated experimentally are shown to be gp-distant from the CHSH inequality. This result fails in the singular limit p=∞, at which gp is Euclidean and the corresponding model classical. Although Invariant Set Theory is deterministic and locally causal, it is not conspiratorial and does not compromise experimenter free will. The relationship between Invariant Set Theory, Bohmian Theory, The Cellular Automaton Interpretation of Quantum Theory and p-adic Quantum Theory is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- T N Palmer
- Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PU, UK
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33
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Abstract
Despite the fact that the origin of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) being a contamination and a mutation originating from primates is well-documented alternative narratives are often being heard ofespecially in sub-Saharan Africa. One such narrative is about HIV being man-made in a military laboratory in the United States. In this article, it is shown how this narrative was fabricated by the intelligence services in East Germany (German Democratic Republic - GDR) as part of the ideological warfare during the Cold War. The purpose of this article is to put an end to a long-lasting conspiracy theory, which is still alive and may create diversion from serious research on the topic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders Jeppsson
- 1 Lund University, Department for Global Health & Social Medicine, Malmö, Sweden
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34
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Dinnsen DA. On the unity of children's phonological error patterns: distinguishing symptoms from the problem. Clin Linguist Phon 2011; 25:968-974. [PMID: 21787147 PMCID: PMC3291332 DOI: 10.3109/02699206.2011.599473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
This article compares the claims of rule- and constraint-based accounts of three seemingly distinct error patterns, namely, Deaffrication, Consonant Harmony and Assibilation, in the sound system of a child with a phonological delay. It is argued that these error patterns are not separate problems, but rather are symptoms of a larger conspiracy to avoid word-initial coronal stops. The clinical implications of these findings are also considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel A Dinnsen
- Department of Linguistics, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA.
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