A longitudinal study looking into election conspiracy beliefs and attitudes towards democracy found that people who support authoritarianism tend to endorse stronger conspiracy beliefs. There was no evidence of the reverse effect (conspiracy beliefs fostering antidemocratic views). The research was published in Political Psychology. Conspiracy beliefs are explanations that attribute significant events to secret plots by powerful, hidden groups. They tend to arise in situations of uncertainty, threat, or lack of trust in institutions. Such beliefs can provide a sense of order and meaning by simplifying complex realities. Psychological factors like cognitive biases, the need for control, and heightened pattern perception contribute to their appeal. Social factors, including group identity, marginalization, and online echo chambers, can further reinforce them. Conspiracy beliefs are not limited to any single political ideology or cultural context. While some conspiracies have historically turned out to be true, people holding conspiracy beliefs typically do not base such beliefs on evidence available to them. They also tend not to change their beliefs when evidence that their beliefs are not true appears. Also, …