To believe or not to believe

: a study on the impact of need for uniqueness on conspiracy theory belief, health risk-perceptions, and intention to adhere to health guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

This study aims to test a causal relationship of the effect of the need for uniqueness on the tendency to believe in a conspiracy theory, health risk perceptions, and intention to adhere to health guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study explores the tendency to believe in conspiracy theories and the need for uniqueness as a social motive. As higher need for uniqueness is often associated with the tendency to conform less to societal norms and majorities, we have hypothesized that higher need for uniqueness leads to lower intention to adhere to health guidelines for an individual’s health, lower concern of health risks to others, lower conformity, and lower concern for negative consequences. We have also hypothesized that higher need for uniqueness leads to higher conspiracy theory belief, higher impact of conspiracy belief on risk perceptions, and higher vaccine hesitancy than lower need for uniqueness. Despite most results not being significant, we discovered that participants with a higher need for uniqueness showed higher concern about the negative consequences of not complying with pandemic guidelines. However, belief in different conspiracy theories did not significantly differ between high and low need for uniqueness, except for belief in the theory “COVID-19 as a manmade bioweapon”. These results challenge our hypotheses and emphasize the need for different measures related to the need for uniqueness. Despite limitations, the findings of this study may assist in promoting preventive behaviors during global health crises.

Date of Award	29 Jun 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Sofia Jacinto (Supervisor)