Belief operationalization for empirical research in psychological sciences

Polarization of beliefs as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic: The case of Spain

“…The survey in waves 2 and 3 included 12 items or propositions as follows (originally in Spanish): 1) “I think that any failure can lead to a catastrophe”; 2) “I think that there is nothing beyond death”; 3) “I think that the world is about to end”; 4) “I think that government authorities tend to be intrusive and controlling”; 5) “I think that scientific progress can help us overcome death and live forever”; 6) “I think that individual rights are more important than the needs of any group”; 7) “I think that all human beings deserve respect”; 8) “I think that God answers people’s prayers”; 9) “I think that one should help those who are weak and cannot help themselves”; 10) “I think that being controlled or dominated by others is intolerable”; 11) “I think that most people generally have good intentions”; 12) “I think that it is okay to use animals for medical research”. Participants were given 5 options to express their level of agreement or disagreement with the proposition, based on our theoretical operationalization of belief [ 20 ]: 1) “I agree, and I would continue to agree even if I were shown ‘irrefutable’ proof to the contrary”; 2) “I agree, although I could change my mind if I were shown strong evidence”; 3) “I neither agree nor disagree”; 4) “I disagree, although I could change my mind if I were shown strong evidence”; 5) “I disagree, and I would continue to disagree even if I were shown ‘irrefutable’ proof”. Therefore, answering 1 or 5 entails a strong commitment with or against the proposition, respectively, whereas responding 2 or 4 points to an initial agreement or disagreement with the item, respectively, although open to re-evaluation.…”

“…Therefore, answering 1 or 5 entails a strong commitment with or against the proposition, respectively, whereas responding 2 or 4 points to an initial agreement or disagreement with the item, respectively, although open to re-evaluation. According to our theoretical framework [ 20 ], a belief is: (1) a proposition that is taken to be true; and (2) which the subject is willing to hold even if irrefutable evidence were hypothetically argued against it. In the current study, believing in a proposition is equivalent to expressing a strong agreement with it (answering 1), and a belief in the negation of the proposition is the same as a strong disagreement with it (answering 5).…”

The world around us and the picture(s) in our heads: The effects of news media use on belief organization

“… 1 The term belief is conceptually ambiguous, often used synonymously with, e.g., attitudes or opinions (Camina et al, 2021 ). Since we rely on the understanding of societal beliefs or perceptions common in research on media effects and sociotropic beliefs (Mutz, 1998 ), beliefs are distinct from attitudes.…”

Emotion beliefs: conceptual review and compendium

“…Recently, psychological scientists have shown increased interest in defining and understanding belief [reviewed by Camina et al (2021) ]. The most common approach has been to build from the foundation offered by philosophers, and as explained by Schwitzgebel (2019) : belief is a “propositional attitude,” where a proposition is a statement (e.g., the sun will rise tomorrow), and an attitude is a particular mental state, or “stance,” that includes but is not limited to hope, desire, imagining, and belief.…”

“…Put another way, beliefs “ought to fit with, or get it right about, or match up to” reality (Section 1.1.2). Camina et al (2021) argue that this definition does not disambiguate belief from other mental states including, for example, opinion and knowledge, as these can also end up being falsified in light of new evidence. Their approach to uniquely defining belief is as follows: if an individual answers “no” to the hypothetical question “If you were given irrefutable evidence against it, would you change your mind?” then the proposition in question is a belief.…”