Work

The relationship between conspiracy theory beliefs and political violence

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Recent instances of political violence have prompted concerns over the relationship between conspiracy theory beliefs and violence. Here, we examine the relationships between beliefs in various conspiracy theories and three operationalizations of violence––support for political violence, self-reported engagement in political violence, and engagement in non-political conflict. While we did observe significant correlations between most conspiracy theory beliefs and (support for) violence, we also observed considerable variability in the correlations. We found that this variability is related to the popularity of the conspiracy theories. Specifically, conspiracy theory beliefs that are more “fringe,” held by smaller groups of homogenous people, are likely to be more strongly correlated with (support for) violence than beliefs in more popular theories. Our findings have implications for those seeking to curtail conspiracy theory-related violence.

Source: Harvard Kennedy School Misinformation Review

DOI: 10.37016/mr-2020-163

Authors: Adam Enders, Casey Klofstad, Joseph Uscinski

Institutions: University of Louisville, University of Miami

Language: English

Topic: Misinformation and Its Impacts

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: diamond

Funder: National Science Foundation