Work

Examining conspiracy theory spillover in the health communication arena: factors that impact COVID-19 conspiratorial beliefs and health-related behaviors

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This study examined the strength of different groups of individual-level variables in predicting conspiracy beliefs about Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and related health behaviors by conducting a survey on a national online sample of U.S. adults. The results indicated that, among a wide range of individual-level variables, including psychopathological variables, cognitive variables, trust perceptions, trait emotions, health-related variables, and demographics, general belief in conspiracy theories (CTs) best predicted belief in specific COVID-19 CTs. In addition, our results showed that a stronger belief in COVID-19 CTs served as a significant predictor of engaging in less avoidance behavior. Furthermore, our results indicated that belief in general CTs does not directly lead to a change in avoidance behavior; the relationship is instead mediated by belief in COVID-19 CTs. Perceived severity of COVID-19 was the best predictor for proactive health behavior, whereas actual vaccination behavior was best predicted by confidence in COVID-19 vaccines. These results were interpreted using a framework that combines health communication theories with the concepts of path dependency and spillover effects in conspiratorial thinking.

Source: Frontiers in Communication

DOI: 10.3389/fcomm.2025.1548575

Authors: Ivanka Pjesivac, Leslie Klein, Wenqing Zhao, Xuerong Lu, Yan Jin

Institutions: University of Georgia, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Oregon State University

Language: English

Topic: Misinformation and Its Impacts

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,418