It is all a conspiracy: Conspiracy theories about the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine

Abstract

Objectives. Conspiracy theories (CTs) thrive in times of societal crises, such as the COVID-19 outbreak or the war in Ukraine. This study aims to explore the CTs related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war.
Sample and settings. Mainly the students of the University of Pardubice were asked to participate in the questionnaire survey, other respondents were obtained using the snowball method (N = 1092).
Hypotheses. The author assumes that (1) people who hold CTs from the COVID-19 pandemic are more likely to adhere to CTs from the Ukraine war; (2) supporters of a particular CT tend to believe mutually contradictory conspirational explanations of the same phenomenon in the case of both the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the war in Ukraine; and (3) people not vaccinated against the COVID-19 express less support for Ukraine than those who have been vaccinated against COVID-19.
Statistical analyses. Correlation analysis, Mann-Whitney test, Confirmatory factor analysis.
Results. All three hypotheses were confirmed: (1) people who believe the CTs about the COVID-19 pandemic tend to believe also the CTs about the war in Ukraine; (2) supporters of a particular CT tend to believe mutually contradictory conspirational explanations of the same phenomenon; and (3) people not vaccinated against the COVID-19 are more likely to believe the CTs not only about the COVID-19 pandemic but also about the war in Ukraine, and they also express less support for Ukraine and are more susceptible to Russian narratives.
Limitations. Sample consists mainly of university students; correlational design of the study.