ArticleBrain and behavior2025
Pandemic or "Plandemic"?: The Mediating Role of Epistemic Justification Strategies in the Relationship Between COVID-19 Conspiracy Beliefs and COVID-19 Vaccine Conspiracy Beliefs.
Article in Brain and behavior, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Vaccination Readiness and Conspiracy Beliefs to Virus-Based Diseases: A Validation Study.The Canadian journal of infectious diseases & medical microbiology = Journal canadien des maladies infectieuses et de la microbiologie medicale · 2026Article
- Dark Future: Development and Initial Validation of Artificial Intelligence Conspiracy Beliefs Scale (AICBS).Brain and behavior · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundIn today's post-truth times, where personal feelings and beliefs have become increasingly important, determining what is accurate knowledge has become an important skill. This is especially important during uncertainty crises (e.g., epidemics and pandemics) because alternative explanations other than scientific knowledge may be disseminated vigorously. Epistemic justification concerns how and in what way the truth of knowledge claims is justified and the criteria for knowledge to be true and/or a fact. Given this backdrop, the present study examined how individuals reacted to conspiracies in an uncertainty crisis (using the COVID-19 pandemic as an example).
aimThe mediating role of epistemic justification was investigated regarding its relationship between COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs and COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy beliefs.
methodsA cross-sectional study was conducted incorporating a multifactorial correlational design. Using convenience sampling, 690 participants (55.7% females, M
resultsThe results demonstrated a strong and statistically significant correlation between beliefs in COVID-19 conspiracy theories and beliefs in COVID-19 vaccination conspiracy theories. The mediating effects of justification by authority and personal justification were statistically significant between COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs and COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theories.
conclusionUsing the COVID-19 pandemic as an example, the present results indicated the complex relationships between conspiracy beliefs and epistemic justification. The present results indicate the importance of authorities in taking early action to provide scientific evidence and information to the public to avoid individuals believing false information.
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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.