Blaming a few bad apples to save a threatened barrel: the system-justifying function of conspiracy theories
Open accessAbstract
This research demonstrates that conspiracy theories—often represented as subversive alternatives to establishment narratives—may bolster, rather than undermine, support for the social status quo when its legitimacy is under threat. A pilot study (N = 98) found a positive relationship between conspiracy belief and satisfaction with the status quo. In Study 1 (N = 120), threatening (vs. affirming) the status quo in British society caused participants to endorse conspiracy theories. In Study 2 (N = 159), exposure to conspiracy theories increased satisfaction with the British social system after this had been experimentally threatened. In Study 3 (N = 109), this effect was mediated by the tendency for participants exposed (vs. not exposed) to conspiracy theories to attribute societal problems relatively more strongly to small groups of people rather than systemic causes. By blaming tragedies, disasters, and social problems on the actions of a malign few, conspiracy theories can divert attention from the inherent limitations of social systems.
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“…in conspiracy theories increases following threats to control (Van Prooijen & Acker, 2015; Whitson & Galinsky, 2008), threats to the status quo (Jolley et al., 2018), impactful and negative societal events (Van Prooijen & Van Dijk, 2014), experiences of social exclusion (Poon et al., 2020),…”
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“…the societal and political system that citizens live in. Threatening the societal and political status quo increases con-spiracy thinking; moreover, exposing participants to a conspiracy theory increases system justification when the status quo is threatened (Jolley et al., 2018; Mao et al., 2021).”
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“Besides its function to justify the legitimacy of ingroup identity and values (Jolley et al., 2018), the prototypical form of intergroup representation that lies at the root of conspiracy theories also provides perceived epistemic justification for antiscientific conceptions of climate change, vaccination, AIDS, and G…”
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“In general, groups that are characterized by a strong ingroup identity and a perceived threat from an outgroup are more likely to hold conspiracy beliefs (Cichocka et al., 2016; Jolley et al., 2018; Van Prooijen and Douglas, 2018).”
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Polls, Plots, and Party Politics
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(2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0001 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
The Collective Conspiracy Mentality in Poland
Soral, W., Cichocka, A. K., Bilewicz, M., & Marchlewska, M. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0025 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
de Oliveira, T. M., Wang, Z., & Xu, J. (2022) · Online Media and Global Communication · doi:10.1515/omgc-2022-0005 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
The vicious cycle of violent intergroup conflicts and conspiracy theories
Hebel‐Sela, S., Hameiri, B., & Halperin, E. (2022) · Current Opinion in Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101422 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
Hohlfeld, R., Harnischmacher, M., Heinke, E., Lehner, L. S., Sengl, M., & Verlagsgesellschaft, N. (2020) · Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG eBooks · doi:10.5771/9783748901334 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
System Threat during a Pandemic: How Conspiracy Theories Help to Justify the System
Mao, J., van Prooijen, J., Yang, S., & Guo, Y. (2021) · Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology · doi:10.1177/18344909211057001 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Douglas, K. M., Sutton, R. M., van Lissa, C. V., Stroebe, W., Kreienkamp, J., Agostini, M., Bélanger, J., Gützkow, B., Abakoumkin, G., Khaiyom, J. H. A., et al. (2023) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2968 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
How Conspiracy Theories Spread
DeWitt, D., Atkinson, M., & Wegner, D. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0021 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Sotola, L. K., & Credé, M. (2022) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2858 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Gkinopoulos, T., & Mari, S. (2022) · Journal of Applied Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/jasp.12923 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
What Does It Mean for a Conspiracy Theory to Be a ‘Theory’?
Duetz, J. C. M. (2023) · Social Epistemology · doi:10.1080/02691728.2023.2172697 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
“One alleged feature of belief in conspiracy theories is the idea that the masses (or ‘sheeple’) are gullible for believing the official theory to be an established account without any critical reflection (Nattrass 2012; Jolley, Douglas, and Sutton 2018).”
What We Mean When We Say “Conspiracy Theory”
Walker, J. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0003 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Conspiracy Theories and Religion
Robertson, D. G. C., & Dyrendal, A. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0028 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Górska, P., Marchlewska, M., Szczepańska, D., Molenda, Z., Michalski, P., & Furman, A. (2022) · Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/00224545.2022.2111250 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
“…et al., 1999; Jolley & Douglas, 2014b), feelings of relative deprivation (Bilewicz et al., 2013), threats to the fairness of the political system (Jolley et al., 2018), one’s feelings of self-worth (Cichocka, Marchlewska, Golec de Zavala et al., 2016), and in-group identity (Cichocka,…”
Disinformation and Conspiracy Theories in the Age of COVID-19
Pereira, P. S., Silveira, A. D. S., & Pereira, A. (2020) · Frontiers in Sociology · doi:10.3389/fsoc.2020.560681 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
“Conspiracy theories usually have a system-justifying function of supporting the status quo by redirecting the public attention toward imaginary perils and distracting from genuine threats (Eco, 2014; Jolley et al., 2018).”
BackgroundMao, J., Zeng, Z., Yang, S., Guo, Y., & van Prooijen, J. (2023) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/pops.12924 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Wood, M. J., & Douglas, K. M. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0016 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Rejection of the status quo: Conspiracy theories and preference for alternative political systems
Papaioannou, K., Pantazi, M., & van Prooijen, J. (2024) · British Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/bjso.12754 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Sternisko, A., Cichocka, A. K., & Bavel, J. J. V. (2020) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/wvqes · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Hetzel, N., Klawier, T., Prochazka, F., & Schweiger, W. (2022) · Studies in Communication and Media · doi:10.5771/2192-4007-2022-4-508 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Atkinson, M., & DeWitt, D. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0008 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
McKenzie-McHarg, A. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0004 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Media Marginalization of Racial Minorities
Orr, M., & Husting, G. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0005 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Determinants of belief in conspiracy theories about the war in Ukraine among youth
Schuster, J., Fobel, L., & Kolleck, N. (2023) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/pops.12949 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
On the Democratic Problem of Conspiracy Politics
Moore, A. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0007 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
COVID-19: Belief in Conspiracy Theories and the Need for Quarantine
Егорова, М., Parshikova, O. V., Chertkova, Y. D., Staroverov, V. M., & Mitina, O. V. (2020) · Psychology in Russia State of Art · doi:10.11621/pir.2020.0401 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Kraemer, T., Weiger, W. H., Trang, S. T.-N., & Trenz, M. (2022) · Journal of Product Innovation Management · doi:10.1111/jpim.12646 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
How does economic inequality shape conspiracy theories? Empirical evidence from China
Zeng, Z., Tian, C., Mao, J., van Prooijen, J., Zhang, Y., Yang, S., Xie, X., & Guo, Y. (2023) · British Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/bjso.12689 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Abadi, D., van Prooijen, J. W., Krouwel, A., & Fischer, A. (2024) · Cognition & Emotion · doi:10.1080/02699931.2024.2360584 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
“Threats have also been linked to increased conspi-racy beliefs (for overviews, see Douglas et al., 2019; Jolley et al., 2018; Kofta et al., 2020; Poon et al., 2020; Van Prooijen, 2020; Van Prooijen & Acker, 2015), but no studies to date have explicitly distinguished between different forms of…”
Kont, J., Elving, W. J. L., Broersma, M., & Bozdağ, Ç. (2024) · Communications · doi:10.1515/commun-2023-0078 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
“Here, all results link higher perceived threat and feelings of exclusion to higher conspiracy theory belief (e. g., Jolley et al., 2018).”
BackgroundEshel, Y., Kimhi, S., Marciano, H., & Adini, B. B. (2022) · Journal of Psychiatric Research · doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.04.042 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
“Empirical evidence shows that conspiracy theories are positively correlated with anxiety (Grzesiak-Feldman, 2013), supported by the perception that society is under threat (Jolley et al., 2018), and that fundamental social values are deteriorating (Federico et al., 2018).”
Engaging with Conspiracy Believers
Douglas, K. M., Sutton, R. M., Biddlestone, M., Green, R., & Toribio‐Flórez, D. (2024) · Review of Philosophy and Psychology · doi:10.1007/s13164-024-00741-0 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Imhoff, R., Dieterle, L., & Lamberty, P. (2019) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/v4pb9 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Conspiracy Beliefs and the Perception of Intergroup Inequalities
Nera, K., Douglas, K. M., Bertin, P., Delouvée, S., & Klein, O. (2024) · Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin · doi:10.1177/01461672241279085 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
“Mao et al. (2023) have shown that conspiracy theories blaming the national ingroup’s authorities reduce system justification, whereas conspiracy theories accusing powerful outgroups (e.g., the United States in a Chinese participants sample) foster system justification (see also Jolley et al., 2018).”
Conspiracy Theories in U.S. History
Olmstead, K. S. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0019 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Lewandowsky, S. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0010 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Martini, S., Guidi, M., Olmastroni, F., Basile, L., Borri, R., & Isernia, P. (2021) · Italian Political Science Review/Rivista Italiana di Scienza Politica · doi:10.1017/ipo.2021.26 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
“Then, conspiracism seems to have an emotional basis, being correlated with anxiety (Grzesiak-Feldman, 2013) and the perception that society is under threat (Jolley et al., 2018).”
BackgroundMethodMeuer, M., Oeberst, A., & Imhoff, R. (2021) · International Review of Social Psychology · doi:10.5334/irsp.587 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Conspiracy Stress or Relief? Learned Helplessness and Conspiratorial Thinking
Farhart, C. E., Miller, J. M., & Saunders, K. L. (2022) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197578384.003.0011 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Staszak, S., Maciejowska, J., Urjasz, W., Misiuro, T., & Cudo, A. (2022) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph192214789 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
“Moreover, there is some evidence that the need for predictability and closed-mindedness may predict beliefs in conspiracy theories [31].”
BackgroundInfluentialThe Conspiratorial Style in Turkish Politics
Nefes, T. S. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0026 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Teorias da conspiração: significados em contexto brasileiro
Rezende, A. T., da Silva, F. M. D. S. M., Ribeiro, M. G. C., Loureto, G. D. L., Neta, O. F. D. S., & Gouveia, V. V. (2019) · Estudos de Psicologia (Campinas) · doi:10.1590/1982-0275201936e180010 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Citizen engagement in the "post-truth era"
Andrei, A., Zait, A., Stoian, C., Ţugulea, O., & Manolică, A. (2019) · Kybernetes · doi:10.1108/k-03-2019-0178 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Conspiracy Thinking, Tolerance, and Democracy
Smallpage, S. M. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0012 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Comprehending Covidiocy Communication
Spitzberg, B. H. (2021) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781119751809.ch2 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Better support for national than local system during the COVID‐19 pandemic in China
Xie, X., Yue, Z., Zhang, R. J., Ding, Y., & Guo, Y. (2022) · Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy · doi:10.1111/asap.12298 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Communities, Gateways, and Bridges: Measuring Attention Flow in the Reddit Political Sphere
Rollo, C., Morales, G. D. F., Monti, C., & Panisson, A. (2022) · Lecture notes in computer science · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-19097-1_1 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
The Truth Is Around Here Somewhere
Bost, P. R. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0018 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
- Authors
- Jolley, D., Douglas, K. M., & Sutton, R. M.
- Affiliations
- University of Staffordshire (GB)
- University of Kent (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Jolley, Daniel
- Douglas, Karen M.
- Sutton, Robbie M.
- Venue
- Political Psychology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2017-02-18
- Volume
- 39
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 465-478
- ISSN
- 0162-895X (ISSN-L)
- 1467-9221
- OpenAlex
- W2589123060
- Cited by
- 170
- References
- 59
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 42 · 2021: 18 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 42 · 2017: 1
- FWCI
- 44.83
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- Licence
- Locations
- Political Psychology (publishedVersion)
- Staffordshire Online Repository (Staffordshire University) (acceptedVersion)
- Kent Academic Repository (University of Kent) (acceptedVersion)
- Repository@Nottingham (University of Nottingham) (acceptedVersion, other-oa)
- Repository@Nottingham (University of Nottingham) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Northumbria Research Link (Northumbria University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Misinformation and Its Impacts
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence
- Keywords
- conspiracy theories, system justification, status quo, social legitimacy, blame attribution, British society
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