Religiosity and Conspiracy Beliefs: The Study of Catholic Poland

• In Event: Memory, Religion, and Conspiracy: The Politics of Narrative in East Europe

Abstract

The presented study contributes to the discussion on factors responsible for believing or not believing in conspiracy theories. Researchers undertaking religiosity studies observe a similarity between an all-powerful being (as described in many religions) and a hidden power organizing events or hiding the truth. This undefinable power is a fundamental feature of conspiracy thinking (Galliford and Furnham, 2017). Although in some studies religious individuals were more likely than non-religious ones to believe in conspiracy theories (Kim and Kim, 2021; Tonković et al., 2021; Freeman et al., 2022; Leibovitz et al., 2021), other studies found no significant causation (e.g., Agley and Xiao, 2021; Furnham, 2021; Teličák and Halama, 2021), or the relationship was different for different conspiracy belief (CB) scales (Atari et al., 2019). Different models and their results encourage us to continue more in-depth investigation of the problem.

The aim of the presented study is to verify the relationship between religiosity and conspiracy beliefs. It asks: What is the specificity of the relationship between religiosity and belief in conspiracy theories? Is this relationship complementary, reinforcing, or conflicting? The answers will be achieved through an online survey conducted among conspiracy groups on Facebook between January and May 2023. The study applies the Generic Conspiracist Beliefs Scale (in Polish adaptation). We consider several groups of conspiracy theories (COVID, anti-vaccine, anti-5G, anti-Ukrainian) to diagnose the attitudes towards them. In the area of diagnosis of religiosity, we use the Brief Version of the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith and a series of questions measuring various dimensions of religiosity: religious practices, religious beliefs, religious experiences.

The study is carried out in Poland, which creates a special platform for examining the outlined model. The former results from Poles’ declared high level of religiosity as well as the past and present role of the Catholic Church. Poland is highly homogeneous in social terms, especially with regard to the nationality and religious structure. More than 90% citizens declare to be Polish nationals and Roman Catholics. It is worth emphasizing that Polish religiosity is specific as it is more cultural than either institutional or spiritual. Polish religiosity is a fusion of sacred and profane spheres in everyday life. It has a popular character; it is dominated by non-liturgical elements and involves anything that used to be called paraliturgy in classic theology. Popular religiosity, although frequently considered to be immature, gives the person something meaningful and helps to form their identity. In Poland, its fundamental features are the mass character (the intensity of religious practices) and a ceremonial form (the observance of holidays and customs).

Authors

• Natalia Anna Galica, University of Silesia in Katowice

• Agnieszka Turska-Kawa, University of Silesia in Katowice