Believe It or Not? Credulity, Skepticism, and Misinformation in the American Public

Despite many concerns about misinformation in American public discourse, there is little research on how credulous or skeptical the American public actually is. Using both an initial test sample of 200 mTurk workers and a national, online survey sample of over 1,000 American adults conducted in January of 2018, we test a battery of items that comprise a “credulity scale.” We find, that when it comes to evaluating ambiguous claims, most Americans are neither overly credulous nor skeptical but mostly uncertain. People who were more likely to endorse ambiguous claims as true, however, were far more likely to believe several different types of misinformation, while “skeptics” are more likely disbelieve information, even if it is true. The likelihood of receptivity is also exacerbated by the message’s intuitive appeal – ambiguous statements with more information are more appealing to the credulous and less appealing to skeptics.

Rise of the Trumpenvolk: Populism in the 2016 Election

Despite the wide application of the label “populist” in the 2016 election cycle, there has been little systematic evidence that this election is distinctive in its populist appeal. Looking at historical trends, contemporary rhetoric, and public opinion data, we find that populism is an appropriate descriptor of the 2016 election and that Donald Trump stands out in particular as the populist par excellence. Historical data reveal a large “representation gap” that typically accompanies populist candidates. Content analysis of campaign speeches shows that Trump, more so than any other candidate, employs a rhetoric that is distinctive in its simplicity, anti-elitism, and collectivism. Original survey data show that Trump’s supporters are distinctive in their unique combination of anti-expertise, anti-elitism, and pronationalist sentiments. Together, these findings highlight the distinctiveness of populism as a mechanism of political mobilization and the unusual character of the 2016 race.

Liberellas Versus Konservatives: Social Status, Ideology, and Birth Names in the United States

Despite much public speculation, there is little scholarly research on whether or how ideology shapes American consumer behavior. Borrowing from previous studies, we theorize that ideology is associated with different forms of taste and conspicuous consumption: liberals are more drawn to indicators of ‘‘cultural capital’’ while conservatives favor more explicit signs of ‘‘economic capital’’. These ideas are tested using birth certificate, U.S. Census, and voting records from California in 2004. We find strong differences in birth naming practices related to race, economic status, and ideology. Although higher status mothers of all races favor more popular birth names, higher status, white liberal mothers more often choose uncommon, culturally obscure birth names. White liberals also favor birth names with ‘‘softer, feminine’’ sounds while conservatives favor names with ‘‘harder, masculine’’ phonemes. These findings have significant implications for both studies of consumption and debates about ideology and political fragmentation in the United States.

Conspiracy Theories and the Paranoid Style(s) of Mass Opinion

Although conspiracy theories have long been a staple of American political culture, no research has systematically examined the nature of their support in the mass public. Using four nationally representative surveys, sampled between 2006 and 2011, we findthat half ofthe American public consistently endorses at least one conspiracytheory andthat many popular conspiracy theories are differentiated along ideological and anomic dimensions. In contrast with many theoretical speculations, we do not find conspiracism to be a product of greater authoritarianism, ignorance, or political conservatism. Rather, the likelihood of supporting conspiracy theories is strongly predicted by a willingness to believe in other unseen, intentional forces and an attraction to Manichean narratives. These findings both demonstrate the widespread allure of conspiracy theories as political explanations and offer new perspectives on the forces that shape mass opinion and American political culture.