The moderating role of reflective thinking on personal factors affecting belief in conspiracy theories

Abstract

The COVID‐19 pandemic has sparked an interest in conspiracy theories worldwide. Previous research has shown that reflective thinking can inhibit belief in conspiracy theories. However, this study delves further by investigating whether reflective thinking moderates the effects of other personal factors, such as anxiety and social class. We conducted an online survey and analyzed data from 937 crowd workers in Japan. The results show that the inhibitory effect of reflective thinking, measured through performance‐based and self‐report methods, remained robust among the participants. However, our analysis yielded near‐null results for the interaction, rejecting the idea that reflective thinking acts as a significant moderator in the relationship between reflective thinking and various personal factors. The implications of these findings suggest that reflective thinking does not amplify factors that strengthen belief in conspiracy theories. Instead, fostering reflective thinking appears to be an effective strategy for reducing conspiracy beliefs.