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Changing Conspiracy Beliefs through Rationality and Ridiculing.

Gábor Orosz1, Péter Krekó2, Benedek Paskuj3

  • 1Department of Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Eötvös Loránd UniversityBudapest, Hungary; Research Centre for Natural Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Psychology, Hungarian Academy of SciencesBudapest, Hungary.

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|October 30, 2016
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Summary

Rational and ridiculing arguments effectively reduce conspiracy theory (CT) beliefs. Presenting CT information as credible, intelligent, and competent significantly enhances belief reduction, while empathy proves ineffective.

Keywords:
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Area of Science:

  • Social Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Belief Formation

Background:

  • Conspiracy theories (CTs) pose societal risks.
  • Effective strategies for reducing CT beliefs are needed.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the efficacy of three distinct strategies for reducing CT beliefs.
  • To examine the role of individual differences in CT reduction.
  • To assess the impact of information source credibility on CT reduction.

Main Methods:

  • An online experiment with 813 participants from Hungary.
  • Random assignment to conditions: rational arguments, ridicule, or empathy.
  • Measurement of individual differences and perceived source credibility.

Main Results:

  • Rational arguments and ridicule significantly reduced CT beliefs.
  • Empathy did not significantly affect CT beliefs.
  • Perceived intelligence and competence of the information source positively influenced CT reduction.
  • Individual differences did not play a significant role in belief reduction.

Conclusions:

  • Rational arguments targeting belief-object links are effective in combating CTs.
  • Source credibility, specifically perceived intelligence and competence, is a crucial factor in CT belief reduction.
  • Ridicule can be effective, but rational arguments offer a more targeted approach.