Bullying and Conspiracy Theories: Experiences of Workplace Bullying and the Tendency to Engage in Conspiracy Theorizing

Jolley, Daniel; Lantian, Anthony

Abstract

Experiences of bullying in the workplace can increase anxiety, paranoia, and hypervigilance to threat in victims. Such factors are also associated with conspiracy beliefs. Two preregistered studies (cross-sectional and experimental) tested whether bullying experiences may be linked to the development of conspiracy beliefs. Study 1 (n = 273) demonstrated that experiences of workplace bullying were positively associated with conspiracy beliefs, an effect that could be explained by paranoia. In Study 2 (n = 206), participants who imagined being bullied (vs. supported) reported increased belief in conspiracy theories. Our research uncovers another antecedent of conspiracy beliefs: workplace bullying. Future research should endeavor to explore how best to support victims and avert the link between being bullied and conspiracy theorizing emerging.

Citation

Jolley, D., & Lantian, A. (2022). Bullying and Conspiracy Theories: Experiences of Workplace Bullying and the Tendency to Engage in Conspiracy Theorizing. Social Psychology, 53(4), 198-208. https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-9335/a000492

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 6, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Oct 27, 2022
• Publication Date: Jul 1, 2022
• Deposit Date: Jun 30, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 1, 2022
• Journal: Social Psychology
• Print ISSN: 1864-9335
• Electronic ISSN: 2151-2590
• Publisher: Hogrefe Publishing Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 53
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 198-208
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-9335/a000492
• Keywords: General Psychology; Sociology and Political Science; Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous); Social Psychology
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/8768538
• Publisher URL: https://econtent.hogrefe.com/doi/10.1027/1864-9335/a000492