The DOI matches its Crossref record; 70 of the 70 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The Effect of Conspiratorial Thinking and Motivated Reasoning on Belief in Election Fraud
Abstract
Belief in electoral fraud has received heightened attention due to elite rhetoric and controversial voter identification (ID) laws. Using a two-wave national survey administered before and after the 2012 election, we examine the individual-level correlates of belief in a range of election-related conspiracy theories. Our data show that partisanship affects the timing and content of belief in election-related conspiracy theories, but a general disposition toward conspiratorial thinking strongly influences those beliefs. Support for voter ID laws, in contrast, appears to be driven largely by party identification through elite-mass linkages. Our analysis suggests that belief in election fraud is a common and predictable consequence of both underlying conspiratorial thinking and motivated partisan reasoning.
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“Social identities are connected with different motives including the need to hold positive beliefs about ingroups and negative beliefs about outgroups [44].”
From The dark side of social movements: social identity, non-conformity, and the lure of conspiracy theories (2020) · cites this paper as [44]
Citations
Cites
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Nyhan, B., & Reifler, J. (2010) · Political Behavior · doi:10.1007/s11109-010-9112-2 · Cited by 3,173
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Lodge, M., & Taber, C. S. (2013) · doi:10.1017/cbo9781139032490 · Cited by 1,281
The Effects of Anti-Vaccine Conspiracy Theories on Vaccination Intentions
Jolley, D., & Douglas, K. M. (2014) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0089177 · Cited by 1,232
Conspiracy theories: Causes and cures
Sunstein, C. R., & Vermeule, A. (2009) · Journal of Political Philosophy · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9760.2008.00325.x · Cited by 1,050
Bruder, M., Haffke, P., Neave, N., Nouripanah, N., & Imhoff, R. (2013) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00225 · Cited by 1,049 · cited 2×
“Conspiratorial predispositions or conspiratorial thinking refer to an underlying world view in which events and circumstances are more or less the product of conspiracy (Brotherton 2015; Brotherton, French, and Pickering 2013; Bruder et al. 2013; Dagnall et al. 2015; Imhoff and Bruder 2014; Lantian et al. 2016; Lewand…”
Research works printed but not linked: 3
- Ansolabehere Stephen, 2008, Harvard Law Review, 121, 1737
- Coady David, 2006, Conspiracy Theories: The Philosophical Debate
- Overton Spencer, 2007, Michigan Law Review, 105, 631
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Understanding Conspiracy Theories
Douglas, K. M., Uscinski, J. E., Sutton, R. M., Cichocka, A., Nefes, T., Ang, C. S., & Deravi, F. (2019) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/pops.12568 · Cited by 1,511
“Motivated reasoning has frequently been observed with conspiracy theories, particularly with partisanship and political ideology (Duran, Nicholson, & Dale, 2017; Edelson et al., 2017; Enders et al., 2018; Hartman & Newmark, 2012; Miller et al., 2016; Nyhan, 2010; Oliver & Wood 2014a; Pasek, Stark, Krosnik, & Tompson,…”
BackgroundConspiracy mentality and political orientation across 26 countries
Imhoff, R., Zimmer, F., Klein, O., António, J. H. C., Babińska, M., Bangerter, A., Bilewicz, M., Blanuša, N., Bovan, K., Bužarovska, R., et al. (2022) · Nature Human Behaviour · doi:10.1038/s41562-021-01258-7 · Cited by 274
Douglas, K. M., & Sutton, R. M. (2022) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev-psych-032420-031329 · Cited by 376
Conspiracy Theories and the People Who Believe Them
(2018) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.001.0001 · Cited by 294
The Effects of Unsubstantiated Claims of Voter Fraud on Confidence in Elections
Berlinski, N., Doyle, M., Guess, A., Levy, G., Lyons, B. A., Montgomery, J., Nyhan, B., & Reifler, J. (2021) · Journal of Experimental Political Science · doi:10.1017/xps.2021.18 · Cited by 135
Metadata
- Authors
- Edelson, J., Alduncin, A., Krewson, C., Sieja, J. A., & Uscinski, J. E.
- Affiliations
- University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
- University of Wisconsin–Madison, USA
- St. Lawrence University (US)
- University of Miami (US)
- Corresponding author
- Uscinski, Joseph E.
- Venue
- Political Research Quarterly
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2017-07-31
- Volume
- 70
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 933-946
- ISSN
- 1065-9129 (ISSN-L)
- 1938-274X
- OpenAlex
- W2739660896
- Cited by
- 198
- References
- 70
- Citations by year
- 2026: 12 · 2025: 28 · 2024: 26 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 34 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 7 · 2018: 38
- FWCI
- 39.21
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Political Research Quarterly (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Misinformation and Its Impacts
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Electoral Systems and Political Participation
- Physical Sciences › Mathematics › Statistics and Probability › Benford’s Law and Fraud Detection
- Keywords
- conspiracy beliefs, motivated reasoning, party identification, voter ID laws, 2012 elections
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