Is democracy under threat? Why belief in conspiracy theories predicts autocratic attitudes

Abstract

Scholars and policy‐makers are increasingly concerned with the detrimental effects of conspiracy theories. Yet, it remains unclear whether conspiracy beliefs actually pose a threat to democracy by rendering people less supportive of democratic governance. Three studies suggest that conspiracy theories may incite support for autocratic regimes. A first nationally representative sample (Greece, N = 492), established a link between conspiracy beliefs and rejection of democracy and the political status quo. Study 2 extended these findings (Greece, N = 264) by showing that conspiracy beliefs are positively related to support for autocracy, while feelings of political powerlessness (but not cynicism) partly mediate this relationship. Study 3 (USA, N = 300, pre‐registered) directly tested whether perceptions of conspiracies enhance support for autocratic rule. Results revealed that the perceived presence of conspiracies increased support for autocracy, partly due to feelings of political powerlessness. These studies are the first ones to establish empirically that conspiracy theories may increase support for autocracy.

Exploring the Nexus between Conspiracy Beliefs and Creativity, Attitudes toward People, and Psychological Wellbeing: Insights from the 10th European Social Survey

“…Numerous studies have evidenced that conspiracy beliefs might lead to destructive consequences for individuals and groups. They can promote social isolation [121], polarization, conflicts [122], stigmatization [123,124], victimization, and even violence [124,125]. The consequences of conspiracy beliefs are far away opposite to the directions pointed out by national and international organizations and documents reaching out for a better future for all [43,[126][127][128].…”

Democracy, Peace, and Religion in Nigeria: Can Religion Be Used to Consolidate or Undermine Democracy and Peace?

“…It also measures how institutions of the state ensure and guarantee principles of the separation of powers and the delegation of responsibilities that allow for effective service delivery and the delivery of the dividends of democracy to the people. The fourth characteristic of consolidated democracy is the effectiveness of the civil society space that advocates the effective engagement of relevant stakeholders such as Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), Faith-Based Organizations (FBOs), and other grassroot movements that advocate active and free citizen participation in democracy and other topical issues affecting the state without any form of undue interference and attacks by state forces (Papaioannou et al 2023). Members of civil society carry out their activities through effective advocacy, campaigns, teachings, and community and societal engagements that promote a vibrant political and democratic culture (Oni 2016).…”

Change by (almost) all means: The role of conspiracy mentality in predicting support for social change among the political left and right

“…Belief in conspiracy theories has been linked to lower institutional trust (Pummerer, Böhm et al., 2022) and reduced norm adherence (Pummerer, 2022). For instance, belief in conspiracy theories predicts lower endorsement of mundane prosocial norms (e.g., not talking during a movie; Pummerer, Ditrich et al., 2022), less compliance with health guidelines during the COVID‐19 pandemic (van Mulukom et al., 2022), an increased readiness to perform non‐normative political actions such as committing a violent attack on a person in power (Imhoff et al., 2021) and other forms of violent extremism (Jolley & Paterson, 2020; Obaidi et al., 2022; Rottweiler & Gill, 2022) and rejection of the current political system (Pantazi et al., 2022; Papaioannou et al., 2023a). Belief in conspiracy theories can also be the result of the experience of low political control, for example due to political defeat (Imhoff et al., 2022; Kim et al., 2022), which should be strongly related to a striving for (political) change in order to improve the status quo.…”