Public sector corruption is fertile ground for conspiracy beliefs: A comparison between 26 Western and non‐Western countries

Overview & Synopsis

Research on conspiracy theories has mainly focused on psychosocial and sociodemographic factors associated with conspiracy beliefs. Little is known about factors at the nation-level that provide a breeding ground for conspiracist thinking. However, an interesting finding emerges from recent international comparisons: people living in countries with a highly corrupt public sector seem to be more likely to endorse conspiracy theories. The present study aims to replicate this finding with new data. We investigate the relationship between corruption and conspiracy beliefs across 26 Western and non-Western countries through multiple linear regression analyses and conditional inference trees. In addition to the corruption level of these countries, our statistical models include other nation-level factors known to be associated with the prevalence of conspiracy beliefs, namely their levels of democracy, freedom of the press, social threat (unemployment and homicide rates), economic inequality, and human development (life expectancy, standard of living, and education). Our analyses confirm a robust link between public sector corruption and conspiracy beliefs that remains significant when controlling for these other factors. We suggest that public sector corruption is fertile ground for conspiracy theories because it makes them less implausible to the public.