How Sharing Conspiracy Theories can Damage the Reputations of Science and Healthcare Professionals
Research suggests that conspiracy theories are stigmatised beliefs (Lantian et al., 2018). For instance, Green et al. (2023a) showed that a fictitious politician who shared a political conspiracy theory was generally viewed as less trustworthy, predictable, competent, and less likely to win votes, compared to a politician who refuted the conspiracy theory. However, prominent politicians and experts do sometimes share conspiracy theories. Recently, for example, the ecologist and co-founder of Greenpeace stated that the climate crisis is “bought and paid for”, and a renowned UK National Health Service consultant surgeon posted videos online declaring COVID-19 a hoax (Dyer, 2023).
In some recent research, the CONSPIRACY_FX team examined the reputational consequences for scientific and healthcare professionals who share conspiracy theories. In a similar way to Green et al. (2023b), participants were presented with fictitious professionals (i.e., scientists and medical doctors) who either shared or refuted conspiracy theories related to science or health. A control group of participants read a neutral text from the professional that made no mention of conspiracy theories. Green et al. examined participants’ perceptions of the professionals’ credibility and trustworthiness, as well as participants’ intentions to follow their advice. The researchers also examined the extent to which the participants’ own conspiracy beliefs influenced their impressions of professionals who share conspiracy theories about science and health.
Results showed that professionals who endorsed conspiracy theories were perceived less favourably in important ways. Specifically, they were perceived as less credible, trustworthy, honest, and intelligent compared to professionals who refuted such theories or said something neutral. People also viewed them more as outsiders and frauds, and said they would be less likely to follow their advice. Importantly, participants’ own conspiracy beliefs shaped these perceptions: Participants with lower levels of conspiracy belief formed stronger negative impressions of conspiracy-sharing professionals. In contrast, the higher the participants’ own conspiracy beliefs, the braver they thought the conspiracy-sharing professionals were.
This research supports the idea that conspiracy theories carry a social stigma (Lantian et al., 2018) and also suggests a harsh reality—sharing conspiracy theories can damage reputations. However, it also suggests that people who already believe in conspiracy theories might not be too concerned when professionals share them.
📚🔬 Read the full research article here: Impressions of science and healthcare professionals who share anti-science conspiracy theories