QAnon Research: August 29th, 2022
Enter the mind of conspiracy (there's a special edition from a psych mag, that's all)
Psychology, Religion, and Health
Quick Editor’s Note: Peter was on vacation and poorly timed last month’s submissions, we’ll be back with a call for submission in two weeks. Apologies!
This month, we return with a healthy batch of research articles, mostly focused on conspiracy attitudes and behaviors, and then throw some religion in there just to shake things up. We also start off with an exciting edited volume invitation and conclude with a few calls for papers. Don’t miss the special edition hidden amongst the readings: I was going to include more papers this month, but that special issue should keep people entertained for now. Lots of writing on conspiracy theories is being published, happy reading!
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Edited Volume Invitation: The Frankfurt School in New Times [Link]
Abstracts due December 15th, 2022.
From Co-editor Chris Conner, University of Missouri Columbia (ctckdg@missouri.edu):
Over the next year I will be collecting papers for an edited volume on cults, conspiracy theories, right wing extremism, and QAnon. This interdisciplinary edited volume will be part of Rowman & Littlefield's "The Frankfurt School in New Times" book series. This is a new book series that has already received tremendous support from the academic community including David Smith, Douglas Kellner, Bob Antonio, and others from sociology and philosophy.
This edited volume seeks to highlight how larger historical and structural forces give rise to conspiratorial thinking—highlighting the interplay between larger structural forces (i.e. algorithms, economic forces, political gridlock, etc.), while also unpacking the social-psychological processes which motivate people to participate in conspiracy movements.
For consideration please send a brief title and abstract (around 300 words) by December 15th. Final submissions should be around 5,000 - 10,000 words. Chapter format should include a brief overview of the phenomenon being studied (be it QAnon, flat earth, Nasara/Gesara, Starseeds, 9/11 truthers, holocaust deniers, new age spiritualism, conspiracy movements, historical conspiracies theories, sovereign citizens, etc.)—and try to make this accessible to outsiders. This should be followed by a literature review containing the structural, historical, and social psychological concepts that you intend to unpack in the chapter, followed by evidence or findings that illustrate these concepts, a discussion, and finally a conclusion.
Our aim is to have this all wrapped up by next August, and sooner if possible. A lot of the timing depends on a successful recruitment, quality of submissions, and flexibility of the contributors.
If accepted for this project, authors may also be invited—pending publisher's approval—to submit larger projects as part of the series should they be interested.
Publications
“American Politics in Two Dimensions: Partisan and Ideological Identities versus Anti-Establishment Orientations” in American Journal of Political Science [Link]
Joseph E. Uscinski (uscinski@miami.edu), Adam M. Enders, Michelle I. Seelig, Casey A. Klofstad, John R. Funchion, Caleb Everett, Stefan Wuchty, Kamal Premaratne, Manohar N. Murthi
Author’s QAnon Takeaway: Anti-establishment views predict QAnon belief
Abstract: Contemporary political ills at the mass behavior level (e.g., outgroup aggression, conspiracy theories) are often attributed to increasing polarization and partisan tribalism. We theorize that many such problems are less the product of left-right orientations than an orthogonal “anti-establishment” dimension of opinion dominated by conspiracy, populist, and Manichean orientations. Using two national surveys from 2019 and 2020, we find that this dimension of opinion is correlated with several antisocial psychological traits, the acceptance of political violence, and time spent on extremist social media platforms. It is also related to support for populist candidates, such as Trump and Sanders, and beliefs in misinformation and conspiracy theories. While many inherently view politics as a conflict between left and right, others see it as a battle between “the people” and a corrupt establishment. Our findings demonstrate an urgent need to expand the traditional conceptualization of mass opinion beyond familiar left-right identities and affective orientations.
“Who Supports QAnon? A Case Study in Political Extremism” in The Journal of Politics [Link]
Adam M. Enders, Joseph E. Uscinski (uscinski@miami.edu), Casey A. Klofstad, Stefan Wuchty, Michelle I. Seelig, John R. Funchion, Manohar N. Murthi, Kamal Premaratne, and Justin Stoler
Author’s QAnon Takeaway: Psychological traits predict QAnon beliefs
Abstract: The QAnon conspiracy theory has garnered increasing attention as more than 80 pro-QAnon congressional candidates vied for nominations in 2020 primary races. The QAnon movement is widely characterized as “far right” and “growing,” but such claims rest on flimsy evidence. Using six public opinion polls from 2018 to 2020, we find that support for QAnon is both meager and stable across time. QAnon also appears to find support among both the political right and left; rather than partisan valence, it is the extremity of political orientations that relates to QAnon support. Finally, we demonstrate that while QAnon supporters are “extreme,” they are not so in the ideological sense. Rather, QAnon support is best explained by conspiratorial worldviews, dark triad personality traits, and a predisposition toward other nonnormative behavior. These findings have implications for the study of conspiracy theories and the spread of misinformation and suggest new directions for research on political extremism.
“Have Beliefs in Conspiracy Theories Increased Over Time?” in PLOS ONE [Link]
Joseph Uscinski (uscinski@miami.edu), Adam Enders, Casey Klofstad, Michelle Seelig, Hugo Drochon, Kamal Premaratne, Manohar Murthi
Abstract: The public is convinced that beliefs in conspiracy theories are increasing, and many scholars, journalists, and policymakers agree. Given the associations between conspiracy theories and many non-normative tendencies, lawmakers have called for policies to address these increases. However, little evidence has been provided to demonstrate that beliefs in conspiracy theories have, in fact, increased over time. We address this evidentiary gap. Study 1 investigates change in the proportion of Americans believing 46 conspiracy theories; our observations in some instances span half a century. Study 2 examines change in the proportion of individuals across six European countries believing six conspiracy theories. Study 3 traces beliefs about which groups are conspiring against “us,” while Study 4 tracks generalized conspiracy thinking in the U.S. from 2012 to 2021. In no instance do we observe systematic evidence for an increase in conspiracism, however operationalized. We discuss the theoretical and policy implications of our findings.
“How Coordinated Link Sharing Behavior and Partisans’ Narrative Framing Fan the Spread of COVID-19 Misinformation and Conspiracy Theories” in Social Network Analysis and Mining [Link]
Anatoliy Gruzd, Philip Mai, and Felipe Bonow Soares
Abstract: This study examines the presence and role of Coordinated Link Sharing Behavior (CLSB) on Facebook around the “America’s Frontline Doctors” press conference, and the promotion of several unproven conspiracy theories including the false assertion that hydroxychloroquine is a “cure” for COVID-19 by Dr. Stella Immanuel, one of the doctors who took part in the press conference. We collected 7,737 public Facebook posts mentioning Stella Immanuel using CrowdTangle and then applied the specialized program CooRnet to detect CLSB among Facebook public pages, groups and verified profiles. Finally, we used a mixed-method approach consisting of both network and content analysis to examine the nature and scope of the detected CLSB. Our analysis shows how Facebook accounts engaged in CLSB to fuel the spread of misinformation. We identified a coalition of Facebook accounts that engaged in CLSB to promote COVID-19 related misinformation. This coalition included US-based pro-Trump, QAnon, and anti-vaccination accounts. In addition, we identified Facebook accounts that engaged in CLSB in other countries, such as Brazil and France, that primarily promoted hydroxychloroquine, and some accounts in African countries that criticized the government's pandemic response in their countries.
“QAnon as an Online-Facilitated Cult: Integrating Models of Belief, Practice, and Identity” in The Journal of Religion and Violence [Link]
Shuki J. Cohen
Abstract: Through the examination of QAnon as a religious apocalyptic “digital cult,” this paper integrates individual psychological models regarding the espousal of conspiracy beliefs with sociological and anthropological models of religious cultism, particularly in the context of destructive and violent cults. This integrative model purports to reconcile the apparent contradiction between the extravagant irrationality of the QAnon belief-system with the otherwise normative demographics of its adherents and distinguish—as scholars of religion often do—between the creed, the practice, and the social identity aspects of the movement. Cultic studies (adapted to the digital age) are leveraged to discern the functions that different strata of adherents provide to the movement, and elucidate the mechanisms by which they coexist, collaborate, and avoid splitting along organizational or ideological fault-lines. The model also draws upon studies of apocalyptic cults and violent radicalization to caution against counter-productive over-generalization, over-sensationalizing, and over-pathologizing of QAnon believers.
Special Issue in Current Opinion in Psychology: Conspiracy Theories (2023) [Link]
Edited by Jan-Willem van Prooijen and Roland Imhoff
Description: The past decade has made clear that conspiracy theories play an important role in the well-being of citizens and the fate of societies. Conspiracy theories have defined the course of some of the most influential election campaigns in recent history (the Brexit referendum; the 2016 Trump election), have shaped citizens’ responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, and contributed to impactful and violent geopolitical conflicts (e.g., Putin’s allegation that NATO is hiding biological and chemical weapons in Ukraine). Conspiracy beliefs are associated with citizens’ decision whether or not to get vaccinated for diseases, what political parties they vote for, whether they support policy to reduce climate change, and whether they radicalize into rigid and sometimes violent ideologies. While conspiracy theories have always been part of human societies, only recently their significance in human emotions, relationships, and behavior has been recognized in psychological research. Indeed, the field has moved away from the assumption that conspiracy beliefs are a fringe phenomenon, and as such, the number of researchers and research programs focused on understanding the psychological antecedents and consequences of conspiracy beliefs has grown exponentially. The current special issue is designed to enable leading academic researchers to share their views about the psychology of conspiracy beliefs.
Call for Papers
BioMed Central Cross-Journal Special Issue: Misinformation and Health [Link]
Submissions due April 7th, 2023.
From the website, “The spread of false or misleading health information, now a major public health concern, has become more pronounced in the last two decades with the help of the social media ecosystem and has been highlighted most recently by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Although many consequences of misinformation are immediately apparent, it also carries with it the danger of more insidious effects. With this in mind, and with more and more people turning to the internet in search of health information, misinformation requires greater action from those working in public health research, policy and practice.”
Social Behavior and Personality Special Collection: Psychology of Fake News [Link]
Submissions due July 31st, 2023.
From the website, “Social media technologies offer easy access to increasing volumes of information. However, instant access to information does not necessarily guarantee its veracity, value, and authenticity. The last decade has witnessed the rise of post-truth politics, a proliferation of conspiracy theories, and an infodemic amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
While political propaganda is not a new phenomenon, post-truth politics—characterized by political debates that give primacy to emotions over facts—take places in a uniquely modern, interconnected, ‘echo chamber’ context, affording opportunities for political radicalization. This problem is exacerbated by the propagation of misinformation (incorrect information given without the intention to deceive) and disinformation (false information intended to mislead). One common form of mis/disinformation is conspiracy theories, that is, claims about powerful entities withholding or manipulating the truth.
The dissemination of fake news, an umbrella term for misleading or false information, is outpacing researchers’ understanding of the psychology of mis/disinformation. Simultaneously, society is becoming increasingly aware of the negative consequences of belief in false information, such as resistance to adherence to the preventive measures against COVID-19.
For this special topic, we welcome theoretical or review papers, or empirical submissions that expand the psychology of fake news.”
Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology Special Issue: Healthier Information Ecosystems [Link]
Submissions due May 1st, 2023.
From the website, “This special issue, ‘Healthier Information Ecosystems,’ will focus on the interconnected nature of online pathologies, draw attention to the socio-technical aspects of information technology, and animate interdisciplinary approaches to addressing these problems. Similar to Buckminster Fuller’s mission of ‘World Game,’ we want to aid in developing a wide variety of solutions (including but not limited to technical, political, social, and educational) to the wicked problems of our time to make ‘the world work for 100% of humanity, in the shortest period of time… without ecological offense or the disadvantage of anyone.’
We invite contributions that address the socio-cultural embeddedness of the problems plaguing information ecosystems and provide new ways of thinking about and strategies to achieve a healthier global information environment. We are actively seeking a broad approach to issues of healthier information ecosystems, including both theoretical and applied, qualitative and quantitative, as well as inside and outside the discipline of information science and technology. We are interested in transdisciplinary contributions that move beyond narrow, cross-sectional treatments of online phenomena to highlight the socio-technical dynamics of online spaces framed in cultural-historical contexts.
As Rong Tang (Tang et al., 2021) and colleagues mentioned in their 2021 JASIST piece, information science is experiencing a paradigm shift and the need to better understand the socio-technical side of information technology is central to this change.”