posted on 2023-08-30, 17:45authored byJais Troian, Pascal Wagner-Egger, Matt Motyl, Thomas Arciszewski, Roland Imhoff, Felix Zimmer, Oliver Klein, Maria Babinska, Adrian Bangerter, Michal Bilewicz, Nebojša Blanuša, Kosta Bovan, Rumena Bužarovska, Aleksandra Chichoka, Elif Çelebi, Sylvain Delouvée, Karen M. Douglas, Asbjørn Dyrendal, Biljana Gjoneksa, Sylvie Graf, Estrella Gualda, Gilad Hirschberger, Anna Kende, Peter Krekó, Andre Krouwel, Pia Lamberty, Silvia Mari, Jasna Milosevic, Maria S. Panasiti, Pantasi Myrto, Ljupcho Petkovski, Giuseppina Porciello, J. P. Prims, André Rabelo, Michael Schepisi, Robbie M. Sutton, Viren Swami, Hilda Thórisdóttir, Turjačanin Vladimir, Iris Zezelj, Jan-Willem van Prooijen
Research suggests that belief in conspiracy theories (CT) stems from basic psychological mechanisms and is linked to other belief systems (e.g., religious beliefs). While previous research has extensively examined individual and contextual variables associated with CT beliefs, it has not yet investigated the role of culture. In the current research, we tested, based on a situated cultural cognition perspective, the extent to which culture predicts CT beliefs. Using Hofstede's model of cultural values, three nation‐level analyses of data from 25, 19, and 18 countries using different measures of CT beliefs (Study 1, N = 5323; Study 2a, N = 12,255; Study 2b, N = 30,994) revealed positive associations between masculinity, collectivism, and CT beliefs. A cross‐sectional study among U.S. citizens (Study 3, N = 350), using individual‐level measures of Hofstede's values, replicated these findings. A meta‐analysis of correlations across studies corroborated the presence of positive links between CT beliefs, collectivism, r = .31, 95% CI = [.15; .47], and masculinity, r = .39, 95% CI = [.18; .59]. Our results suggest that in addition to individual differences and contextual variables, cultural factors also play an important role in shaping CT beliefs.