Researchers in School of Psychology have found that sharing conspiracy theories on their dating profiles can seriously damage first impressions and reduce romantic interest, but this reaction depends on the political views of the person viewing the profile.
In particular, the study, which involved more than 1,600 participants from the USA, found that liberals were less willing to engage romantically with someone whose profile endorsed conspiracy theories -especially right-wing conspiracy theories, compared to profiles that did not endorse them, whereas conservatives were more accepting and, in some cases, showed higher romantic interest.
The results stem from four experiments in which researchers examined how people respond to online dating profiles that expressed belief in conspiracy theories. Participants viewed fictitious dating profiles that either shared a conspiracy theory, explicitly rejected one, or made no mention of conspiracy beliefs.
Overall, profiles that shared conspiracy theories were judged less favourably. Participants perceived the individuals behind these profiles as less trustworthy, less competent, and less warm, and they reported less willingness to befriend them or pursue romantic relationships. When using a simulated Tinder-style dating app, participants were also more likely to swipe left to reject profiles that shared conspiracy theories, indicating that they were less interested in dating them.
However, the findings also revealed an important exception. People tended to judge conspiracy-sharing profiles less harshly when the conspiracy theory aligned with their own political views. In some cases – particularly among more conservative participants – sharing right-wing conspiracy theories did not reduce dating interest and was sometimes viewed more positively than rejecting those beliefs. Conspiracy-sharing profiles were also consistently seen as more ‘unique’, suggesting that endorsing such beliefs may sometimes signal distinctiveness, while still being associated with lower relationship prospects overall.
Lead researcher Dr Ricky Green said: ‘Sharing conspiracy theories generally comes with reputational costs, especially in contexts like online dating where first impressions are important, but these costs are not evenly distributed. When a conspiracy theory signals ideological misalignment, the negative consequences are amplified with profiles being judged especially harshly by people who do not share those political views. By contrast, when the conspiracy theory aligns with a perceiver’s own ideology, these negative reactions are attenuated or even disappear. This was particularly evident among conservative participants, who were more accepting of politically neutral and right-wing conspiracy theories than liberal participants were.’
‘These findings help explain why people might still choose to share conspiracy theories despite the reputational costs’ Green added. ‘In some contexts, doing so may help people stand out or appeal to politically like-minded audiences – even if it reduces their broader appeal.’
The research highlights how conspiracy beliefs shape everyday social interactions, including the formation of new romantic relationships.
This research is part of the European Research Council–funded project CONSPIRACY_FX, led by Professor Karen Douglas, which examines the social, interpersonal, and societal consequences of conspiracy theories.
The article, “Conspiracy Theories and Online Dating: It’s a (Mis)match!”, is published in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/01461672251399448