Conspiracy Theories and Their Impact on Outgroup Attitudes During Crises

What happens when people believe in conspiracy theories during crises? This study took a closer look at this question, focusing on Germany. Researchers used an experiment to see how different crisis scenarios, like health, economic, and security issues, affected people's attitudes towards others, or "outgroups. " They found that when people were exposed to conspiratorial framings of these crises, they tended to have more negative views of outgroups.

This effect was especially strong in cases of security crises, like war scenarios. Interestingly, these negative attitudes didn't depend on whether people were left- or right-wing. Both groups showed more negativity when exposed to conspiracy theories. This study adds to our understanding of how conspiracy beliefs can harm how we view and treat others during tough times.

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