SynthesisCurrent opinion in psychology2022
The role of conspiracy beliefs for COVID-19 health responses: A meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Current opinion in psychology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 44 papers, 3 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.
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Who cites it
44 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The efficacy of interventions in reducing belief in conspiracy theories: A systematic review.PloS one · 2023Pooled it
- Summarising data and factors associated with COVID-19 related conspiracy theories in the first year of the pandemic: a systematic review and narrative synthesis.BMC psychology · 2022Pooled it
- A continuous time meta-analysis of the relationship between conspiracy beliefs and individual preventive behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic.Scientific reports · 2022Pooled it
- Fighting fire with fire: Prebunking with the use of a plausible meta-conspiracy framing.British journal of psychology (London, England : 1953) · 2026Article
- Refining the role of behavioural and social sciences in pandemic response post-COVID-19.Nature human behaviour · 2026Review
- Unpacking COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: A Network Analysis Perspective on Related Beliefs and Responses.International journal of behavioral medicine · 2026Article
- Adoption of Artificial Intelligence-Based Precision Mental Health Technologies Among Psychology Trainees: Mixed Methods Cross-Sectional Survey Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Article
- Article
- Understanding Unrest: Conspiracy Belief and Violent Radicalization Patterns in Young People During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Netherlands.European journal on criminal policy and research · 2026Article
- Are people noticing excessive mistrust in others and how do they understand it? A survey of a UK representative adult population.Psychological medicine · 2025Article
- Polarization in the COVID-19 pandemic: The impact of vaccination status and conspiracy theories.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2025Article
- Modularity of Online Social Networks and COVID-19 Misinformation Spreading in Russia: Combining Social Network Analysis and National Representative Survey.JMIR infodemiology · 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
- Owners of a conspiratorial heart? Investigating the longitudinal relationship between loneliness and conspiracy beliefs.The British journal of social psychology · 2025Article
- Populist attitudes and belief in conspiracy theories: anti-elitist attitudes and the preference for unrestricted popular sovereignty reduce the positive impact of an analytical thinking style on conspiracy beliefs.BMC research notes · 2025Article
- Use of complementary medicine and uptake of COVID-19 vaccination among US adults.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Article
- How risk communication affects public trust in government: the moderating role of policy expectations.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Conspiracy narratives and vaccine hesitancy: a scoping review of prevalence, impact, and interventions.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Leveraging artificial intelligence to identify the psychological factors associated with conspiracy theory beliefs online.Nature communications · 2024Article
- The negative impact of misinformation and vaccine conspiracy on COVID-19 vaccine uptake and attitudes among the general public in Iraq.Preventive medicine reports · 2024Article
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
While conspiracy theories about COVID-19 are proliferating, their impact on health-related responses during the present pandemic is not yet fully understood. We meta-analyzed correlational and longitudinal evidence from 53 studies (N = 78,625) conducted in 2020 and 2021. Conspiracy beliefs were weakly associated with more reluctance toward prevention measures both cross-sectionally and over time. They explained lower vaccination and social distancing responses but were unrelated to mask wearing and hygiene responses. Conspiracy beliefs showed an increasing association with prevention responses as the pandemic progressed and explained support for alternative treatments lacking scientific bases (e.g., chloroquine treatment, complementary medicine). Despite small and heterogenous effects, at a large scale, conspiracy beliefs are a non-negligible threat to public health.
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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.