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12 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 8 MARCH 2020 OPINION THE novel coronavirus continues to spread around the world, with new cas- es being reported all the time. Spread- ing just as fast, it seems, are conspiracy theories that claim powerful actors are plotting something sinister to do with the virus. Our research into medical conspiracy theories shows that this has the potential to be just as dangerous for societies as the outbreak itself. One conspiracy theory proposes that the coronavirus is actually a bio-weapon engineered by the CIA as a way to wage war on China. Others are convinced that the UK and US governments introduced the coronavirus as a way to make money from a potential vaccine. Although many of these conspiracy theories seem far-fetched, the belief that evil powers are pursuing a secret plan is widespread in every society. Often these relate to health. A large 2019 You- Gov poll found 16% of respondents in Spain believe that HIV was created and spread around the world on purpose by a secret group or organisation. And 27% of French and 12% of British respond- ents were convinced that "the truth about the harmful effects of vaccines is being deliberately hidden from the pub- lic". e spread of fake news and conspiracy theories around the coronavirus is such a significant problem that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has creat- ed a "myth busters" webpage to try and tackle them. Spread of conspiracy theories Research shows that conspiracy theo- ries have a tendency to arise in relation to moments of crisis in society – like terrorist attacks, rapid political chang- es or economic crisis. Conspiracy the- ories bloom in periods of uncertainty and threat, where we seek to make sense of a chaotic world. ese are the same conditions produced by virus outbreaks, which explains the spread of conspiracy theories in relation to coronavirus. Similar conditions occurred with the 2015-16 outbreak of Zika virus. Zika conspiracy theories proposed that the virus was a biological weapon rather than a natural occurrence. Research ex- amining comments on Reddit during the Zika virus outbreak found conspiracy talk emerged as a way for people to cope with the extreme uncertainty they felt over Zika. Trust in the recommendations from health professionals and organisations is an important resource for dealing with a health crisis. But people who believe in conspiracy theories generally do not trust groups they perceive as powerful, including managers, politicians and drug companies. If people do not trust, they are less likely to follow medical advice. Researchers have shown that medical conspiracy theories have the power to increase distrust in medical authorities, which can impact people's willingness to protect themselves. People who en- dorse medical conspiracy theories are less likely to get vaccinated or use anti- biotics and are more likely to take herbal supplements or vitamins. Plus, they are more likely to say they would trust medi- cal advice from nonprofessionals such as friends and family. Severe consequences In light of these results, people who endorse conspiracy theories about the coronavirus may be less likely to follow health advice like frequent hand-cleaning with alcohol-based hand rub or soap, or self-isolating after visit- ing at-risk areas. Instead, these people may be more likely to have negative attitudes towards prevention behaviour or use dangerous alternatives as treatments. is would increase the likelihood of the virus spreading and put more people in dan- ger. Already, we can see "alternative healing approaches" to coronavirus cropping up – some of them very dangerous. Promot- ers of the popular QAnon conspiracy theory, for example, have said the coro- Daniel Jolly & Pia Lamberty Coronavirus is a breeding ground for conspiracy theories Daniel Jolley, Northumbria University, Newcastle and Pia Lamberty, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz The spread of fake news and conspiracy theories around the coronavirus is such a significant problem that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has created a "myth busters" webpage to try and tackle them