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The Effect of Objectification on Conspiracy Beliefs

Funded by General Research Fund, Research Grants Council of Hong Kong

Overview

Objectification is a phenomenon in which someone is treated as an object and seen only as a tool for others' instrumental goals. Prior literature often focuses on sexual objectification, while nonsexual objectification remains underexplored. Although recent studies have found that nonsexual objectification limits authenticity, reduces well-being, increases depressive moods, and triggers self-objectification, little research has investigated its cognitive and behavioural impacts and ways to mitigate them.​

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Objectified people are seen as a tool rather than equal social partners, which may lead them to distrust others in subsequent interactions under the suspicion that they will not receive deserved benefits. Such decreased trust following objectification may prompt individuals to perceive greater existential threats and motivate their evolved functions for survival. Conspiracy beliefs may be seen as a solution in an evolutionarily adaptive process whereby objectified people rely on them to quickly make sense of their situations and protect themselves from potential threats.

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We proposed a novel theoretical framework to explain how objectification increases conspiracy beliefs through thwarted trust, why the increases in conspiracy beliefs following objectification motivate unethical behavior, and how a brief trust restoration intervention mitigates the effects of objectification on conspiracy beliefs and unethical behavior. We used a multi-method approach to test the hypotheses directly derived from our theoretical framework. We proposed that increased conspiracy beliefs following objectification may increase unethical tendencies as objectified individuals may justify these unethical tendencies by the malicious nature and social norm deviance of the plots involved in the conspiracy beliefs they endorse. We further proposed that when objectified people’s trust is stored through interventions, they should be less likely to endorse conspiracy beliefs or enact unethical behavior.

Objectives

This project aimed to fill this research gap by addressing the following objectives:

  1. Examine whether objectification increases people’s conspiracy beliefs.

  2. Examine the psychological mechanism underlying the objectification-conspiracy link.

  3. Examine whether post-objectification increases in conspiracy beliefs motivate unethical behavior.

  4. Examine whether a situational intervention weakens the effects of objectification on conspiracy beliefs and unethical behavior.

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Major Findings

  • Objectification increases conspiracy beliefs through thwarted trust

  • Thwarted trust still significantly mediates the effect of objectification on conspiracy after controlling for negative emotions

  • Objectification increases individuals’ tendencies to engage in various forms of maladaptive behaviors, such as self-injury, internet addiction, and unethical behavior

  • Conspiracy beliefs could explain the effect of objectification on unethical behavior

  • Conspiracy beliefs could lead to various negative outcomes, such as insomnia, aggression, and mental health problems

  • A brief trust restoration intervention effectively weakened unethical tendencies of objectified individuals

This research explains how objectification increases conspiracy beliefs, highlights the behavioral implications of increased conspiracy beliefs following objectification, and identifies intervention strategies to weaken the effects of objectification on conspiracy beliefs and unethical behavior. Overall, these findings enhance our existing understanding of the psychological and behavioral consequences of objectification. This research has valuable theoretical and practical implications. Theoretically, it builds upon existing theories of objectification and opens new avenues for further investigations to examine various consequences of objectification and the underlying mechanisms. Practically, it offers insights for practitioners to develop theoretically informed and empirically sound intervention programs aimed at addressing objectification and related forms of interpersonal maltreatment.

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