Association of personality traits and socio-environmental factors with COVID-19 pandemic-related conspiratorial thinking in the D-A-CH region

Abstract

Misinformation, lack of trust, and uncertainty during the COVID-19 pandemic have fostered the emergence of new conspiracy theories. In August 2021, we examined the association of individual personality traits and socio-environmental factors with high belief in pandemic-related conspiracies through an online survey among 3,067 quota-sampled German-speaking adults residing in the D-A-CH region (Germany, Austria, Switzerland). In multivariable-adjusted regression models, pandemic-related conspiracy belief was, first, negatively associated with tertile (T) of complexity thinking, optimism, and higher level of education (complexity thinking, ORT3vs.T1: 0.43, 95% CI 0.32–0.57, Ptrend < 0.01; optimism, ORT3vs.T1: 0.41, 95% CI: 0.30–0.56, Ptrend < 0.01; higher education, ORT3vs. T1: 0.67, 0.50-0.89; Ptrend <0.01) and second, positively associated with regular participation in religious meetings, not having recently voted, unwillingness of oneself or one’s close contacts to vaccinate, past COVID-19 infection and disapproval of COVID-19 mitigation measures. Our findings highlight the importance to foster complexity understanding through targeted interventions, such as in education settings, to help curb the spread of conspiracy theories. We conclude that, in order to effectively address the challenges posed by pandemic-related conspiracy theories, policymakers must acknowledge the impact of conspiracy beliefs on public health decisions while promoting transparent communication and interdisciplinary (between scientific disciplines) and transdisciplinary (between science and society) research, as well as science literacy and science diplomacy collaboration.