Since the emergence of the recent Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) and its spread as a pandemic, there has been a parallel spread of false and misleading information, known as an infodemic. The COVID-19 infodemic has induced distrust in scientific communities, governments, institutions and the population, and a confidence crisis that has led to harmful health behaviours, also impacting on mental health. The aim of this study is to provide a scoping review of the scientific literature about COVID-19-related misinformation and conspiracy theories, focusing on the construction of a conceptual framework which is useful for the interpretation of the conspiracy theory phenomenon surrounding COVID-19, and its consequences. Particular socio-environmental conditions (i.e., low educational level, younger age), psychological processes and attitudes (such as low levels of epistemic trust, the avoidance of uncertainty, extraversion, collective narcissism, and a conspiracy-prone mindset), and contextual factors (e.g., high levels of self-perceived risk and anxiety) seem to underpin the adherence to beliefs that are not solely the domain of paranoids and extremists but a widespread phenomenon that has caused important health, social and political consequences.

Irrational beliefs about COVID-19: A scoping review / Magarini, F. M.; Pinelli, M.; Sinisi, A.; Ferrari, S.; De Fazio, G. L.; Galeazzi, G. M.. - In: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH. - ISSN 1660-4601. - 18:19(2021), pp. 9839-9860. [10.3390/ijerph18199839]

Irrational beliefs about COVID-19: A scoping review

Magarini F. M.;Pinelli M.;Sinisi A.;Ferrari S.;De Fazio G. L.;Galeazzi G. M.
2021

Abstract

Since the emergence of the recent Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) and its spread as a pandemic, there has been a parallel spread of false and misleading information, known as an infodemic. The COVID-19 infodemic has induced distrust in scientific communities, governments, institutions and the population, and a confidence crisis that has led to harmful health behaviours, also impacting on mental health. The aim of this study is to provide a scoping review of the scientific literature about COVID-19-related misinformation and conspiracy theories, focusing on the construction of a conceptual framework which is useful for the interpretation of the conspiracy theory phenomenon surrounding COVID-19, and its consequences. Particular socio-environmental conditions (i.e., low educational level, younger age), psychological processes and attitudes (such as low levels of epistemic trust, the avoidance of uncertainty, extraversion, collective narcissism, and a conspiracy-prone mindset), and contextual factors (e.g., high levels of self-perceived risk and anxiety) seem to underpin the adherence to beliefs that are not solely the domain of paranoids and extremists but a widespread phenomenon that has caused important health, social and political consequences.
2021
18
19
9839
9860
Irrational beliefs about COVID-19: A scoping review / Magarini, F. M.; Pinelli, M.; Sinisi, A.; Ferrari, S.; De Fazio, G. L.; Galeazzi, G. M.. - In: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH. - ISSN 1660-4601. - 18:19(2021), pp. 9839-9860. [10.3390/ijerph18199839]
Magarini, F. M.; Pinelli, M.; Sinisi, A.; Ferrari, S.; De Fazio, G. L.; Galeazzi, G. M.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11380/1253732
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