Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe Neighborhoods
There are differing perspectives on the roles that social-perceptual and individual-difference factors play in explaining susceptibility to misinformation. With quota-representative samples from the U.S. (n = 492), the U.K. (n = 600), Poland (n = 558), and Germany (n = 490), we ran a comprehensive t...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
PsychOpen GOLD/ Leibniz Institute for Psychology
2024-12-01
|
| Series: | Journal of Social and Political Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5964/jspp.13385 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849724998798802944 |
|---|---|
| author | Aleksander B. Gundersen Sander van der Linden Jan Piasecki Rafał Ryguła Karolina Noworyta Jonas R. Kunst |
| author_facet | Aleksander B. Gundersen Sander van der Linden Jan Piasecki Rafał Ryguła Karolina Noworyta Jonas R. Kunst |
| author_sort | Aleksander B. Gundersen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | There are differing perspectives on the roles that social-perceptual and individual-difference factors play in explaining susceptibility to misinformation. With quota-representative samples from the U.S. (n = 492), the U.K. (n = 600), Poland (n = 558), and Germany (n = 490), we ran a comprehensive test of four social-perceptual factors (i.e., social trust, institutional trust, relative deprivation, and perceived area unsafety) and six individual-difference factors (i.e., narcissism, conspiracy mentality, closed-mindedness, need for predictability, need for order, and perceived locus of control). In terms of the social-perceptual factors, social trust and perceptions of area unsafety were consistently related to higher misinformation susceptibility across countries. In terms of individual-difference factors, narcissism and conspiracy mentality were associated with increased susceptibility to misinformation in three of the four countries. Relative deprivation and external locus of control were related to misinformation susceptibility in the pooled sample. We discuss societal implications of these findings and highlight directions for future research. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9db300c310c04385bd57c1b22b78da35 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2195-3325 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | PsychOpen GOLD/ Leibniz Institute for Psychology |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Social and Political Psychology |
| spelling | doaj-art-9db300c310c04385bd57c1b22b78da352025-08-20T03:10:35ZengPsychOpen GOLD/ Leibniz Institute for PsychologyJournal of Social and Political Psychology2195-33252024-12-0112226528310.5964/jspp.13385jspp.13385Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe NeighborhoodsAleksander B. Gundersen0Sander van der Linden1Jan Piasecki2Rafał Ryguła3Karolina Noworyta4Jonas R. Kunst5Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, NorwayDepartment of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United KingdomDepartment of Philosophy and Bioethics, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, PolandDepartment of Pharmacology, Maj Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, PolandDepartment of Pharmacology, Maj Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, PolandDepartment of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, NorwayThere are differing perspectives on the roles that social-perceptual and individual-difference factors play in explaining susceptibility to misinformation. With quota-representative samples from the U.S. (n = 492), the U.K. (n = 600), Poland (n = 558), and Germany (n = 490), we ran a comprehensive test of four social-perceptual factors (i.e., social trust, institutional trust, relative deprivation, and perceived area unsafety) and six individual-difference factors (i.e., narcissism, conspiracy mentality, closed-mindedness, need for predictability, need for order, and perceived locus of control). In terms of the social-perceptual factors, social trust and perceptions of area unsafety were consistently related to higher misinformation susceptibility across countries. In terms of individual-difference factors, narcissism and conspiracy mentality were associated with increased susceptibility to misinformation in three of the four countries. Relative deprivation and external locus of control were related to misinformation susceptibility in the pooled sample. We discuss societal implications of these findings and highlight directions for future research.https://doi.org/10.5964/jspp.13385conspiracy mentalitycovid-19misinformationnarcissismsocial trust |
| spellingShingle | Aleksander B. Gundersen Sander van der Linden Jan Piasecki Rafał Ryguła Karolina Noworyta Jonas R. Kunst Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe Neighborhoods Journal of Social and Political Psychology conspiracy mentality covid-19 misinformation narcissism social trust |
| title | Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe Neighborhoods |
| title_full | Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe Neighborhoods |
| title_fullStr | Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe Neighborhoods |
| title_full_unstemmed | Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe Neighborhoods |
| title_short | Predicting Misinformation Beliefs Across Four Countries: The Role of Narcissism, Conspiracy Mentality, Social Trust, and Perceptions of Unsafe Neighborhoods |
| title_sort | predicting misinformation beliefs across four countries the role of narcissism conspiracy mentality social trust and perceptions of unsafe neighborhoods |
| topic | conspiracy mentality covid-19 misinformation narcissism social trust |
| url | https://doi.org/10.5964/jspp.13385 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT aleksanderbgundersen predictingmisinformationbeliefsacrossfourcountriestheroleofnarcissismconspiracymentalitysocialtrustandperceptionsofunsafeneighborhoods AT sandervanderlinden predictingmisinformationbeliefsacrossfourcountriestheroleofnarcissismconspiracymentalitysocialtrustandperceptionsofunsafeneighborhoods AT janpiasecki predictingmisinformationbeliefsacrossfourcountriestheroleofnarcissismconspiracymentalitysocialtrustandperceptionsofunsafeneighborhoods AT rafałryguła predictingmisinformationbeliefsacrossfourcountriestheroleofnarcissismconspiracymentalitysocialtrustandperceptionsofunsafeneighborhoods AT karolinanoworyta predictingmisinformationbeliefsacrossfourcountriestheroleofnarcissismconspiracymentalitysocialtrustandperceptionsofunsafeneighborhoods AT jonasrkunst predictingmisinformationbeliefsacrossfourcountriestheroleofnarcissismconspiracymentalitysocialtrustandperceptionsofunsafeneighborhoods |