Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS)
Scales that claim to measure generic conspiracy beliefs are significant instruments for understanding people’s tendency to believe in specific conspiracy theories. Several studies have been conducted on conspiracy theories in Türkiye in recent years. However, there is a lack of a scale that measures...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Istanbul University Press
2024-12-01
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| Series: | Journal of Economy Culture and Society |
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| Online Access: | https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/4003173 |
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| author | Nuh Akçakaya Abdullah Koçak |
| author_facet | Nuh Akçakaya Abdullah Koçak |
| author_sort | Nuh Akçakaya |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Scales that claim to measure generic conspiracy beliefs are significant instruments for understanding people’s tendency to believe in specific conspiracy theories. Several studies have been conducted on conspiracy theories in Türkiye in recent years. However, there is a lack of a scale that measures generic conspiracy beliefs and a scale that can be developed by considering the local socio-cultural dynamics of Türkiye. This study aims to develop a psychometrically valid and reliable Turkish scale for assessing generic conspiracy beliefs. This study introduces the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS), which was developed to measure generic conspiracist beliefs and predict specific theory endorsements. The validity and reliability of the scale were evaluated with reference to three studies. Study 1 (N=112) explored four critical dimensions of conspiracy: deep state, sexuality, foreign powers, and health. Study 2 (N=374) confirmed the content, face, criterion, predictive, and construct validity and reliability of the scale, while Study 3 (N=1110) provided further evidence of the psychometric strength of the scale in a representative Türkiye sample. A recent study conducted in NUTS 1 regions has shown that the scale can be used in a large and representative sample. The findings of this study highlight the power of TCMS in measuring and predicting generic and specific conspiracy theory beliefs. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-57e19996be26461180027f6d24e4cbe3 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2645-8772 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Istanbul University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Economy Culture and Society |
| spelling | doaj-art-57e19996be26461180027f6d24e4cbe32025-02-04T10:17:41ZengIstanbul University PressJournal of Economy Culture and Society2645-87722024-12-017013514910.26650/JECS2024-15006474Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS)Nuh Akçakaya0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1457-1379Abdullah Koçak1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6981-8482Selcuk University, Department of SociologySELCUK UNIVERSITY, INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES, DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC RELATIONS AND PUBLICITYScales that claim to measure generic conspiracy beliefs are significant instruments for understanding people’s tendency to believe in specific conspiracy theories. Several studies have been conducted on conspiracy theories in Türkiye in recent years. However, there is a lack of a scale that measures generic conspiracy beliefs and a scale that can be developed by considering the local socio-cultural dynamics of Türkiye. This study aims to develop a psychometrically valid and reliable Turkish scale for assessing generic conspiracy beliefs. This study introduces the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS), which was developed to measure generic conspiracist beliefs and predict specific theory endorsements. The validity and reliability of the scale were evaluated with reference to three studies. Study 1 (N=112) explored four critical dimensions of conspiracy: deep state, sexuality, foreign powers, and health. Study 2 (N=374) confirmed the content, face, criterion, predictive, and construct validity and reliability of the scale, while Study 3 (N=1110) provided further evidence of the psychometric strength of the scale in a representative Türkiye sample. A recent study conducted in NUTS 1 regions has shown that the scale can be used in a large and representative sample. The findings of this study highlight the power of TCMS in measuring and predicting generic and specific conspiracy theory beliefs.https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/4003173conspiracyconspiracy mentalityconspiracy belieftürkiye |
| spellingShingle | Nuh Akçakaya Abdullah Koçak Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS) Journal of Economy Culture and Society conspiracy conspiracy mentality conspiracy belief türkiye |
| title | Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS) |
| title_full | Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS) |
| title_fullStr | Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS) |
| title_short | Measuring Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories: Developing the Turkish Conspiracy Mentality Scale (TCMS) |
| title_sort | measuring beliefs in conspiracy theories developing the turkish conspiracy mentality scale tcms |
| topic | conspiracy conspiracy mentality conspiracy belief türkiye |
| url | https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/4003173 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nuhakcakaya measuringbeliefsinconspiracytheoriesdevelopingtheturkishconspiracymentalityscaletcms AT abdullahkocak measuringbeliefsinconspiracytheoriesdevelopingtheturkishconspiracymentalityscaletcms |