Testing the underlying structure of unfounded beliefs about COVID-19 around the world

Result code in IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F68081740%3A_____%2F24%3A00575957" target="_blank" >RIV/68081740:_____/24:00575957 - isvavai.cz</a>

Result on the web

<a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13546783.2023.2259539" target="_blank" >https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13546783.2023.2259539</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13546783.2023.2259539" target="_blank" >10.1080/13546783.2023.2259539</a>

Result language

angličtina

Original language name

Testing the underlying structure of unfounded beliefs about COVID-19 around the world

Original language description

Unfounded—conspiracy and health—beliefs about COVID-19 have accompanied the pandemic worldwide. Here, we examined cross-nationally the structure and correlates of these beliefs with an 8-item scale, using a multigroup confirmatory factor analysis. We obtained a two-factor model of unfounded (conspiracy and health) beliefs with good internal structure (average CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.05, SRMR = 0.04), but a high correlation between the two factors (average latent factor correlation = 0.57). This model was replicable across 50 countries (total N = 13,579), as evidenced by metric invariance between countries (CFI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.06, SRMS = 0.07) as well as scalar invariance across genders (CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.04, SRMS = 0.03) and educational levels (CFI = 0.98, RMSEA = 0.04, SRMS = 0.03). Also, lower levels of education, more fear of COVID-19, and more cynicism were weakly associated with stronger conspiracy and health beliefs. The study contributes to knowledge about the structure of unfounded beliefs, and reveals the potential relevance of affective (i.e., fear of COVID-19) and cognitive (i.e., cynicism) factors along with demographics, in endorsing such beliefs. In summary, we obtained cross-cultural evidence for the distinctiveness of unfounded conspiracy and health beliefs about COVID-19 in terms of their structure and correlates.

Czech name

—

Czech description

—

Type

J_imp - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database

CEP classification

—

OECD FORD branch

50101 - Psychology (including human - machine relations)

Project

<a href="/en/project/LX22NPO5101" target="_blank" >LX22NPO5101: The National Institute for Research on the Socioeconomic Impact of Diseases and Systemic Risks</a><br>

Continuities

I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace

Publication year

2024

Confidentiality

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Name of the periodical

Thinking & Reasoning

ISSN

1354-6783

e-ISSN

1464-0708

Volume of the periodical

30

Issue of the periodical within the volume

2

Country of publishing house

GB - UNITED KINGDOM

Number of pages

26

Pages from-to

301-326

UT code for WoS article

001076895900001

EID of the result in the Scopus database

2-s2.0-85173534370