Bertlich Tisa, Bräscher Anne-Kathrin, Germer Sylvan, Witthöft Michael, Imhoff Roland
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
Br J Soc Psychol. 2025 Apr;64(2):e12865. doi: 10.1111/bjso.12865.
Feeling positively connected to other people is a basic human need. If this need is threatened by feeling lonely, people might become more susceptible to conspiracy theories to help make sense of their surroundings. Simultaneously, conspiracy beliefs could lead to loneliness because they can strain existing relationships. Using two pre-registered longitudinal studies, we investigated the reciprocal relationship between loneliness and conspiracy mentality (Study 1, N = 1604) and the more malleable specific conspiracy beliefs (Study 2, N = 1502) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Random-intercept cross-lagged panel models showed that people who are, on average, lonelier are also more likely to believe in conspiracy theories. However, the data provided no support for the notion that conspiracy beliefs and loneliness predicted each other over time. The research helps to understand the thus far mixed evidence on loneliness and conspiracy beliefs and adds important insights to the literature on conspiracy beliefs and need deprivation.
与他人建立积极的联系是人类的基本需求。如果这种需求因感到孤独而受到威胁，人们可能会更容易接受阴谋论，以便理解周围的环境。同时，阴谋论信仰可能会导致孤独，因为它们会破坏现有的人际关系。我们通过两项预先注册的纵向研究，调查了新冠疫情期间孤独感与阴谋心态（研究1，N = 1604）以及更具可塑性的特定阴谋论信仰（研究2，N = 1502）之间的相互关系。随机截距交叉滞后面板模型显示，平均而言，更孤独的人也更有可能相信阴谋论。然而，数据并未支持阴谋论信仰和孤独感会随着时间相互预测这一观点。该研究有助于理解迄今为止关于孤独感和阴谋论信仰的复杂证据，并为关于阴谋论信仰和需求剥夺的文献增添了重要见解。
