Dilemmas of Distrust: Conspiracy Beliefs, Elite Rhetoric, and Motivated Reasoning

2021 ◽  
pp. 106591292110345
Author(s):  
Scott Radnitz
Keyword(s):  
Relative Weight ◽  
State Level ◽  
Motivated Reasoning ◽  
Political Rhetoric ◽  
Survey Experiment ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
The Individual

Conspiracy theories are playing an increasingly prominent role worldwide in both political rhetoric and popular belief. Previous research has emphasized the individual-level factors behind conspiracy belief but paid less attention to the role of elite framing, while focusing mostly on domestic political contexts. This study assesses the relative weight of official conspiracy claims and motivated biases in producing conspiracy beliefs, in two countries where identities other than partisanship are salient: Georgia and Kazakhstan. I report the results of a survey experiment that depicts a possible conspiracy and varies the content of official claims and relevant contextual details. The results show that motivated reasoning stemming from state-level geopolitical identities is strongly associated with higher conspiracy belief, whereas official claims have little effect on people’s perceptions of conspiracy. Respondents who exhibit higher conspiracy ideation are more likely to perceive a conspiracy but do not weight motivated biases or official claims differently from people with lower conspiratorial predispositions. The findings indicate the importance of (geopolitical) identities in shaping conspiracy beliefs and highlight some of the constraints facing elites who seek to benefit from the use of conspiracy claims.

The Role of Anti-Establishment Orientations During the Trump Presidency

The Forum ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-76
Author(s):  
Adam M. Enders ◽  
Joseph E. Uscinski
Keyword(s):  
Electoral Politics ◽  
Political Order ◽  
Donald Trump ◽  
Strict Adherence ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Voter Fraud ◽  
Mass Identification

Abstract Growing levels of polarization and out-group hostility have become fashionable explanations for the caustic politics of the Trump presidency. However, partisan and ideological identities cannot explain popular attraction to Trump’s anti-elite and populist rhetoric, nor can polarization and sorting account for rising levels of mass identification as political independents. In light of these discrepancies, we offer an explanation for the Trump era unrelated to traditional left-right identities and ideologies: anti-establishment orientations. We argue that much of what is interpreted as an expression of partisan and ideological extremism or polarization is actually the product of a deep-seated antagonism toward the broader political establishment. We first exhibit the individual-level correlates of anti-establishment orientations, finding that people holding strong anti-establishment views exhibit relatively high levels of anti-social personality traits and distrust of others. We then show that anti-establishment orientations are more predictive than left-right orientations of beliefs in conspiracy theories regarding COVID-19, QAnon, and voter fraud. Most importantly, we demonstrate that, while anti-establishment orientations are positively related to support for Donald Trump, they are negatively related to support for Joe Biden and both major parties. In short, the toxicity emblematic of the Trump era—support for outsider candidates, belief in conspiracy theories, corrosive rhetoric, and violence—are derivative of antipathy towards the established political order, rather than a strict adherence to partisan and ideological dogma. We conclude that Trump’s most powerful and unique impact on American electoral politics is his activation, inflammation, and manipulation of preexisting anti-establishment orientations for partisan ends.

scholarly journals When Conspiracy Theories Make Sense: The Role of Social Inclusiveness

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sinan Alper
Keyword(s):  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Scientific Literacy ◽  
Press Freedom ◽  
Performance Study ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Education Status ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs

In three studies, I found evidence that people living in less socially inclusive countries (operationalized as having weaker rule of law, and lack of equality and press freedom) have a greater tendency for conspiracy ideation. In Study 1 (21 countries, N = 22,238), participants in less inclusive countries were more likely to believe in conspiracies, even after adjusting for country-level differences in educational performance. Study 2 (24 countries, N = 4,743) and Study 3 (23 countries, N = 5,726) replicated this result by using individual-level education status and scientific literacy as covariates, respectively. The associations between inclusiveness and conspiracy beliefs was stronger for people with higher levels of educational attainment and scientific literacy. I argue that this is because real conspiracies are more likely to actually happen in less inclusive contexts; thus, it is more rational to have increased levels of suspicion of secret and hostile alliances in such countries.

scholarly journals Ambidexterity as Practice: Individual Ambidexterity Through Paradoxical Practices

2020 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angeliki Papachroni ◽  
Loizos Heracleous
Keyword(s):  
Organization Theory ◽  
Practice Theory ◽  
Greek Philosophy ◽  
Exploration And Exploitation ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Competing Demands ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Previous Learning

Following the turn to practice in organization theory and the emerging interest in the microfoundations of ambidexterity, understanding the role of individuals in realizing ambidexterity approaches becomes crucial. Drawing insights from Greek philosophy on paradoxes, and practice theory on paradoxes and ambidexterity, we propose a view of individual ambidexterity grounded in paradoxical practices. Existing conceptualizations of ambidexterity are largely based on separation strategies. Contrary to this perspective, we argue that individual ambidexterity can be accomplished via paradoxical practices that renegotiate or transcend boundaries of exploration and exploitation. We identify three such paradoxical practices at the individual level that can advance understanding of ambidexterity: engaging in “hybrid tasks,” capitalizing cumulatively on previous learning, and adopting a mindset of seeking synergies between the competing demands of exploration and exploitation.

scholarly journals How Can Psychological Science Help Counter the Spread of Fake News?

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sander van der Linden ◽  
Jon Roozenbeek ◽  
Rakoen Maertens ◽  
Melisa Basol ◽  
Ondřej Kácha ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Research Agenda ◽  
Source Credibility ◽  
Fake News ◽  
Intervention Effectiveness ◽  
Motivated Cognition ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Psychological Science ◽  
Open Questions ◽  
The Individual

Abstract In recent years, interest in the psychology of fake news has rapidly increased. We outline the various interventions within psychological science aimed at countering the spread of fake news and misinformation online, focusing primarily on corrective (debunking) and pre-emptive (prebunking) approaches. We also offer a research agenda of open questions within the field of psychological science that relate to how and why fake news spreads and how best to counter it: the longevity of intervention effectiveness; the role of sources and source credibility; whether the sharing of fake news is best explained by the motivated cognition or the inattention accounts; and the complexities of developing psychometrically validated instruments to measure how interventions affect susceptibility to fake news at the individual level.

scholarly journals Oral Sensitivity to Flowability and Food Neophobia Drive Food Preferences and Choice

Foods ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 1024
Author(s):  
Sharon Puleo ◽  
Paolo Masi ◽  
Silvana Cavella ◽  
Rossella Di Monaco
Keyword(s):  
Food Choice ◽  
Food Preferences ◽  
Food Neophobia ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Choice Preference ◽  
Food Liking ◽  
Texture Sensitivity ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Oral Sensitivity

The study aimed to investigate the role of sensitivity to flowability on food liking and choice, the relationship between sensitivity to flowability and food neophobia, and its role in food liking. Five chocolate creams were prepared with different levels of flowability, and rheological measurements were performed to characterise them. One hundred seventy-six subjects filled in the Food Neophobia Scale and a food choice questionnaire (FCq). The FCq was developed to evaluate preferences within a pair of food items similar in flavour but different in texture. Secondly, the subjects evaluated their liking for creams (labelled affective magnitude (LAM) scale) and the flowability intensity (generalised labelled magnitude (gLM) scale). The subjects were clustered into three groups of sensitivity and two groups of choice preference. The effect of individual flowability sensitivity on food choice was investigated. Finally, the subjects were clustered into two groups according to their food neophobia level. The sensitivity to flowability significantly affected the liking of chocolate creams and the solid food choice. The liking of chocolate creams was also affected by the individual level of neophobia (p = 0.01), which, in turn, was not correlated to flowability sensitivity. These results confirm that texture sensitivity and food neophobia affect what a person likes and drives what a person chooses to eat.

The Evolution of the Role of U.S. School Nurses in Adolescent Mental Health at the Individual, Community, and Systems Level: An Integrative Review

2022 ◽  
pp. 105984052110681
Author(s):  
Ashwini R. Hoskote ◽  
Emily Croce ◽  
Karen E. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Adolescent Mental Health ◽  
School Nurse ◽  
School Nurses ◽  
Integrative Review ◽  
School Nursing ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Impact

School nurses are crucial to addressing adolescent mental health, yet evidence concerning their evolving role has not been synthesized to understand interventions across levels of practice (i.e., individual, community, systems). We conducted an integrative review of school nurse roles in mental health in the U.S. related to depressive symptoms, anxiety, and stress. Only 18 articles were identified, published from 1970 to 2019, and primarily described school nurses practicing interventions at the individual level, yet it was unclear whether they were always evidence-based. Although mental health concerns have increased over the years, the dearth of rigorous studies made it difficult to determine the impact of school nurse interventions on student mental health outcomes and school nurses continue to feel unprepared and under supported in this area. More research is needed to establish best practices and systems to support school nursing practice in addressing mental health at all levels of practice.

scholarly journals The Interaction of Organizational Capabilities and Individual Competences for Open Innovation in Small and Medium Organizations

2019 ◽  
Vol 85 ◽  
pp. 148-175
Author(s):  
Ilma Pranciulytė-Bagdžiūnienė ◽  
Monika Petraitė
Keyword(s):  
Open Innovation ◽  
Strategic Thinking ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Organizational Capabilities ◽  
Organizational Skills ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Business Environments ◽  
The Individual

Open innovation serves as a principal paradigm for success in diverse and dynamic business environments, as it gives the promise of a better-marked acceptance, a higher level of novelty, and managed innovation risks. However, SMEs face a critical challenge in developing open innovation capabilities and establishing new organizational processes that would empower employees to perform in open innovation regimes. We analyze the mediating role of organizational capabilities for employing and facilitating individual competences for innovation performance improvement as based on a survey of 266 SMEs. This study aimed to identify links between organizational capabilities and individual comp etences in AI for innovation performance in SMEs. The results of our study showed that organizational capabilities in AI at the level of organizations play a role as a mediator between competences for AI at the individual level and the progress of innovations. Considering that organizational skills in AI (organizational culture openness, organizational learning and trust, knowledge management systems, etc.) are strong organizational tools that help to increase the efficiency of AI and individual competences (to enhance employee creativity, enhance interaction with partners) as well as management competences (flexibility, ability to work with various professional communities, strategic thinking, etc.). This study partially refutes the assumptions that SMEs can only achieve innovative progress through individual competences in AI. Organizational capabilities in AI are also very important for AI implementation.

Politicizing Solidarity in Times of Crisis: The Politics of Alternative Action Organizations in Greece, Italy, and Spain

2018 ◽  
Vol 62 (6) ◽  
pp. 796-815 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Zamponi ◽  
Lorenzo Bosi
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
Cultural Practices ◽  
Social Solidarity ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Public ◽  
Alternative Action ◽  
Visible Effect ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
The Individual

Alternative action organizations (AAOs) are collective bodies engaged in carrying out alternatives to dominant socioeconomic and cultural practices through actions that aim to provide people with alternative ways of enduring day-to-day difficulties and challenges in hard economic times. They are often interpreted as merely “philanthropic” actors, although it is not rare to see them go beyond the provision of direct services to people in need and end up pursuing political goals through political means. This article focuses on the process of politicization, that is, the transition of issues from the private to the public sphere and thus the use of public forms of contention (e.g., protest) proposing public solutions at the collective level instead of private solutions at the individual level. We argue for the role of the crisis in the politicization of AAOs. In particular, we show that the appropriation of the context as a context of economic crisis in the discourse of AAOs has a visible effect on their politicization, in terms of both repertoire of actions and goals. Furthermore, we show that social solidarity organizations, those that are not inherently politicized, are the main protagonists of this crisis-triggered transition. The article draws on statistical analysis of the data collected through the coding of AAOs’ websites in Greece, Italy, and Spain.

New Technology Communication in American State Governments

2012 ◽  
pp. 1806-1823
Author(s):  
Hyun Jung Yun ◽  
Cynthia Opheim
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
New Technology ◽  
State Level ◽  
Electronic Systems ◽  
State Governments ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Political Exclusion ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Combined Data

This study examines the effects of states’ e-government efforts, more specifically the progress of e-service and e-democracy, on citizens’ general political engagement and electoral participation. Utilizing the combined data with the state level of West’s e-Government measures (2008) and the individual level of the 2008 American Election Study, this study finds a strong link between state sponsored efforts at e-Government and traditional forms of the public’s political participation. State sponsored digital services and outreach increase general political participation more than campaign activities, and the implementation of e-democracy has a greater effect on mobilization than e-service. The results imply that e-government has potential to ameliorate political exclusion by letting the politically disadvantaged access a higher quality of information with an equalized accessibility through state governments’ electronic systems.

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