Study: Conspiracy theories link antisemitism to hostility toward Israel
The study found a strong link between antisemitic beliefs, conspiracy theories, and anti-Israel attitudes. The researchers found that conspiratorial beliefs related to Jews and Israel explained more than half of the anti-Israel attitudes tested - but they emphasize: criticism of Israel is not necessarily antisemitic.
Conspiracy theories may serve as a bridge between antisemitism and hostility toward Israel, according to a new American study published in the journal American Psychologist. The researchers found a significant link between the three phenomena and examined how antisemitic attitudes may predict belief in conspiracy theories and, subsequently, anti-Israel attitudes. The study was led by psychologist Dr. Kent Harber of Rutgers University-Newark.
The study was conducted due to the documented global rise in antisemitism from 2010 onwards. Among other things, this involves violent attacks against Jews in the United States and other places around the world, including terrorist attacks on synagogues.
"Parallel to this, there is growing anti-Jewish hostility and growing hostility toward Israel," said Dr. Harber, who also researched conspiracy theories related to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as psychological mechanisms and patterns related to antisemitism. "The study's findings provide an evidence-based framework for understanding how these attitudes intersect – and how conspiracy theories can serve as a powerful and persistent bridge between them," said Dr. Harber.
According to him, antisemitism channeled through conspiracy beliefs about Israel and its supporters explained more than 55% of the anti-Israel attitudes in all the cases he examined. "This is a very large effect for a psychological study," said Dr. Harber. "A significant amount of hostility toward Israel is integrated with antisemitism. The link between antisemitism, conspiracy theories, and hostility toward Israel is predictive, reliable, and strong."
Dr. Harber emphasized that not all criticism of Israel and its government is inherently antisemitic. His team's goal was not to suppress legitimate debate, but to encourage greater awareness. "People can have legitimate reasons for criticizing Israel, just like any other country," said Dr. Harber. "Even unfair or uninformed hostility toward Israel does not necessarily reveal manifestations of antisemitism. It is important to note that the study's findings are correlational and do not explain causality."
