Measuring adolescents' beliefs in conspiracy theories: development and validation of the Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire (ACBQ)

Jolley, D, Douglas, KM, Skipper, Y, Thomas, E and Cookson, D ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5450-0727, 2021. Measuring adolescents' beliefs in conspiracy theories: development and validation of the Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire (ACBQ). British Journal of Developmental Psychology. ISSN 0261-510X

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Abstract

Four studies (total n = 961) developed and validated the Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire (ACBQ). Initial items were developed in collaboration with teachers. An Exploratory Factor Analysis (Study 1, n = 208, aged 11-14) and a student focus group (N = 3, aged 11) enabled us to establish the factor structure of a 9-item scale. This was replicated via Confirmatory Factor Analysis in Study 2 (N = 178, aged 11-17), and the scale displayed good convergent (i.e., relationship with paranoia and mistrust) and discriminant validity (i.e., no relationship with extraversion). Study 3a (N = 257) further tested convergent validity with a sample of 18-year olds (i.e., relationship with adult-validated measures of conspiracy beliefs), and demonstrated strong test re-test reliability. Study 3b (N = 318) replicated these findings with a mixed-age adult sample. The ACBQ will allow researchers to explore the psychological antecedents and consequences of conspiracy thinking in young populations.

Item Type:	Journal article
Alternative Title:	Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire
Publication Title:	British Journal of Developmental Psychology
Creators:	Jolley, D., Douglas, K.M., Skipper, Y., Thomas, E. and Cookson, D.
Publisher:	Wiley
Date:	8 February 2021
ISSN:	0261-510X
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1111/bjdp.12368 DOI 1403675 Other
Rights:	© 2021 the authors. British Journal of Developmental Psychology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of British Psychological Society. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Linda Sullivan
Date Added:	29 Jan 2021 10:11
Last Modified:	31 May 2021 15:05
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/42137

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