Witchcraft beliefs and conspiracy theorizing: Evidence from Tanzania and cross-national datasets

This article suggests that since people who believe in magic and those who believe in conspiracy theories produce meaning and make sense of the world by engaging in the same process of signification, they should be more likely to have one such belief if they hold the other. To test this proposition, we perform both macro- and micro-level analyses using, respectively, cross-national datasets and an original set of Tanzanian data. Our findings from both sets of analyses reveal a strong association between witchcraft beliefs and the belief in conspiracy theories. Related Articles: Gainous, Jason, and Bill Radunovich. 2008. “Religion and Core Values: A Reformulation of the Funnel of Causality.” Politics & Policy 33(1): 154–80. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747-1346.2005.tb00213.x. Richey, Sean. 2017. “A Birther and a Truther: The Influence of the Authoritarian Personality on Conspiracy Beliefs.” Politics & Policy 45(3): 465–85. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12206. Tubadji, Annie. 2023. “You'll Never Walk Alone: Loneliness, Religion, and Politico-economic Transformation.” Politics & Policy 51(4): 661–95. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12538.