ArticleInternational journal of environmental research and public health2021
COVID-19 Scientific Facts vs. Conspiracy Theories: Is Science Failing to Pass Its Message?
Article in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Contemporary trends in psychological research on conspiracy beliefs. A systematic review.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Pooled it
- Antecedents and consequences of COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs: A systematic review.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2022Pooled it
- Racial disparities related to the perception of COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness among parents of children aged 0-12 years old in Canada.Human vaccines & immunotherapeutics · 2025Article
- COVID-19 vaccine confidence among parents of racially diverse children aged 0-12 years old in Canada: The role of major experience of racial discrimination, health literacy, and conspiracy beliefs.Human vaccines & immunotherapeutics · 2025Article
- COVID-19 Vaccine Mistrust, Racial Discrimination, and Conspiracy Beliefs Among Parents in Canada: Implications for Public Health.Journal of medical virology · 2025Article
- COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake Rates and Associated Factors in Racially Diverse Parents in Canada: The Threat From Conspiracy Beliefs and Racial Discrimination.Journal of medical virology · 2025Article
- Prevalence of pharmaceutical industry conspiracy theories among the polish population.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Public perception of COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia during the Omicron wave: recommendations for policy improvement.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Rates and Factors Related to COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake in Racialized and Indigenous Individuals in Canada: The Deleterious Effect of Experience of Racial Discrimination.Journal of medical virology · 2024Article
- Rural-urban disparities and trends in cancer screening: an analysis of Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data (2018-2022).JNCI cancer spectrum · 2024Article
- Behavioral, cognitive and emotional determinants of getting vaccinated for COVID-19 and the mediating role of institutional trust among young adults in Cyprus.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Conspiracy Theories, Trust in Science, and Knowledge during the Third Wave of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Cyprus.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- Acceptance and Adherence to COVID-19 Preventive Measures are Shaped Predominantly by Conspiracy Beliefs, Mistrust in Science and Fear - A Comparison of More than 20 Psychological Variables.Psychological reports · 2023Article
- A qualitative study exploring the social contagion of attitudes and uptake of COVID-19 vaccinations.Human vaccines & immunotherapeutics · 2023Article
- The role of defense styles and psychopathological symptoms on adherence to conspiracy theories during the COVID-19 pandemic.Scientific reports · 2023Article
- The Role of Conspiracy Theories, Perceived Risk, and Trust in Science on COVID-19 Vaccination Decisiveness: Evidence from Cyprus.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Article
- The scientistic worldview and its relationships with fear of COVID, conspiracy beliefs, preventive behaviors, and attitudes towards vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic in a Polish sample.Current issues in personality psychology · 2023Article
- Accelerated Digitalization of the Epidemiological Measures: Overcoming the Technological and Process Complexities of Establishing the EU Digital COVID Certificate in Slovenia.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Review
- Digital Marketing: A Unique Multidisciplinary Approach towards the Elimination of Viral Hepatitis.Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Azithromycin Has Been Flying Off the Shelves: The Italian Lesson Learnt from Improper Use of Antibiotics against COVID-19.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Science may be failing to convince a significant number of people about COVID-19 scientific facts and needed public health measures. Individual and social factors are behind believing conspiracy theories. Adults (N = 1001) were asked to rate their beliefs in various conspiracy theories circulating in social media, rate their psychological distress relating to COVID-19, rate their trust in science to solve COVID-19 problems, and rate their willingness to adhere to measures regarding social distancing and quarantine. The findings showed conspiracy theories are widely believed and related to lower age, lower education, living in less densely populated areas, and lower income. Stronger conspiracy theory beliefs predicted science mistrust and unwillingness to adhere to public health measures. Psychological state was a strong predictor of conspiracy beliefs. Recommendations, stemming from the findings, for reducing such beliefs and better serving public health are discussed.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.