61 research outputs found
Network Gender & STEM 2024 presentation
No full text"Conspiracy theories in gender equality initiatives: exploring the role of intergroup threat". Presented in Symposium 3F (Meritocracy, intersectionality, and conspiracy: How the politics of gender equality initiatives relate to belongingness and support for interventions among STEM students, academics, and professionals" at Network Gender & STEM 2024 Conference at Heidelberg University
[OLS-6] Open Science III: Next Steps in Open Science
No full text"Applying FAIR principles to (open) data management". A talk for Open LifeSci's cohort calls
[OLS-6] Open Science III: Next Steps in Open Science
No full text"Applying FAIR principles to (open) data management". A talk for Open LifeSci's cohort calls
Conspiracy theory beliefs and dis/misinformation about gender equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives: an intergroup perspective
No full text[OLS-6] Open Science III: Next Steps in Open Science
No full text"Applying FAIR principles to (open) data management". A talk for Open LifeSci's cohort calls
Predictors of conspiracy beliefs regarding gender equality initiatives within Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
No full textDespite their slow progress, gender equality initiatives (GEIs) have faced considerable backlash. In some cases, this has developed into conspiracy theorizing about their true nature. Despite serious implications, including an association with far-right radicalization, formal research on this topic remains limited. The present study aimed to develop a measure of conspiracy theories about GEIs, then to identify how these relate to broader conspiracy beliefs and gender-based attitudes.15 items were developed using conspiracy theories present on social media, blogs and image board websites. An exploratory factor analysis indicated two factors: An 11-item factor including conspiracy theories opposing GEIs, and a two-item factor containing transphobic conspiracy theories.Men were more likely to endorse conspiracy theories opposing GEIs than women. In a regression analysis, realistic threat, hostile sexism, modern sexism, and general conspiracy beliefs emerged as significant predictors of this. These findings suggest that conspiracy beliefs about GEIs exist and can be measured, but further work is needed to differentiate them from related constructs.<br/
The effect of intergroup threat on conspiracy beliefs about gender equality initiatives within Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (ISPP 2022 Poster)
No full textEquality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) initiatives face backlash which can be adopted into the “culture wars” narrative. This can include circulation of conspiracy theories about these initiatives – for example, the allegation that feminists use them to hinder men’s career progression or fire non-conformists. In a pilot study (N=303), realistic threat and gender identification emerged as predictors of gender EDI conspiracy beliefs, as measured by a new scale. This study will provide an experimental test of this relationship
ECER 2023 talk: Attitude Inoculation Within Gender Equality Training as a Preventative Tool for Gender-Based Conspiracy Theory Beliefs
No full textPresentation for the Network 32 "Searching for diverse patterns of organizing: Pathways, Practices and Pitfalls" symposium at the European Conference on Educational Research 2023 in Glasgow, UK
The effect of conspiracy theory exposure and debriefing on conspiracy theory beliefs
No full textConspiracy theories are allegations that events or phenomena are in fact the result of secret schemes by groups of powerful actors (Douglas et al., 2019). They are a regular feature of the information landscape, with social media and partisan news websites being identified as major distributors of conspiracy theories (e.g. Ha et al., 2022). This is of concern, as individuals who believe conspiracy theories are more likely to express a range of negative attitudinal and behavioural outcomes, including reduced health-protective behaviours (Allington et al., 2020; Natoli & Marques, 2021; Pummerer et al., 2022), reduced support for pro-climate policies (Biddlestone et al., 2022), and negative attitudes towards out-groups (Hebel-Sela et al., 2022; Jolley et al., 2021). However, these findings are largely cross-sectional, meaning that relatively little experimental investigation has tested the impacts of exposure to conspiracy theories (Jolley et al., 2022; van Prooijen & Imhoff, 2022). The development of experimental paradigms which test the effects of exposure to a wide range of conspiracy theories is thus vital to understanding their psychological and behavioural consequences.
Douglas and Sutton (2008) found that individuals underestimated the influence that conspiracy theories had on their own beliefs despite accurately assessing their impact on others’ beliefs, suggesting that the persuasiveness of conspiracy theories may operate outside of conscious awareness. As such, it is vital to implement a debriefing procedure that nullifies the effect of any conspiracy theory exposure, thereby reducing the chance of the participant adopting the belief and any associated behavioural consequences. Debriefing procedures are well established in misinformation and false memory studies, with recent guidelines pre-printed by Greene et al. (2022) outlining best practice in this area. Unfortunately, the effectiveness of debriefing procedures for exposure to conspiracy theories remains untested. The efficacy of the standard debriefing procedure – providing a block of text which debunks the conspiracy theories in question – therefore remains unclear.
This study aims to test whether fake news articles laden with conspiracy theories increase endorsement of those same conspiracy theories, and whether the standard debriefing procedure can nullify this effect. This will inform the design of future studies which expose participants to conspiracy theories
The effect of intergroup threat on conspiracy beliefs about gender equality initiatives within Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.
No full textThe aim of this study is to investigate the effect of intergroup threat on attitudes towards gender equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) initiatives, including conspiracy theories about them.EDI initiatives face backlash, which can be adopted into the “culture wars” narrative. This can include circulation of conspiracy theories about these initiatives – for example, the allegation that feminists use EDI to hinder men’s career progression. In a pilot study (N=303), realistic threat and gender identification emerged as predictors of gender EDI conspiracy beliefs, as measured by a new scale. This study will provide an experimental test of this relationship.Approximately 350 men working in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) will be recruited via Prolific. Participants will be randomly allocated to read an article about STEM workplaces, ostensibly from an online news publication, designed to induce realistic threat, symbolic threat or negative affect. Participants will then complete measures of general attitudes and conspiracy beliefs regarding gender EDI initiatives, gender identification, male collective narcissism and zero-sum beliefs about gender equality. The latter three variables will be investigated as moderators. Measures and analyses will be pre-registered on OSF. Data analysis will be completed by January 2022.These findings will elaborate the role of intergroup threat in conspiracy beliefs. Furthermore, conspiracy beliefs have been shown to influence behaviour. As such, these findings may provide a framework to inform interventions addressing both negative and conspiratorial beliefs about EDI initiatives, thereby improving engagement with them
- …
