Examining Influences on Beliefs About Psychology as a Science

This study explored how certain factors can influence people's beliefs in psychological myths and their views of psychology as a science. We assessed conservatism, religiosity, critical thinking, need for cognition, number of psychology courses taken, college credits earned, belief in psychology as a science, and endorsement of psychological myths. We hypothesized that conservatism and religiosity would correlate positively with myth endorsement and negatively with seeing psychology as a science, while critical thinking, need for cognition, psychology courses taken, and total credits would show negative correlations. Results revealed conservatism positively influenced myth endorsement and negatively influenced seeing psychology as a science, supporting the hypothesis. However, religiosity did not significantly correlate with either outcome, failing to support previous research and our hypothesis. As expected, critical thinking, need for cognition, psychology courses, and total credits were positively correlated to seeing psychology as a science and negatively related to myth endorsement. These findings highlight the role of conservative ideology, critical thinking, and educational attainment in shaping beliefs about psychological science and misconceptions. The discovery that religiosity did not impact these beliefs counters assumptions about the incompatibility between religion and science. Limitations like the homogenous sample and political scale must be addressed. Overall, this research bridges how people come to accept psychological misinformation with implications for public comprehension of mental health issues. We discuss how disseminating accurate psychological knowledge dismantles myths and how conservative distrust of science could negatively impact society if people become less likely to view psychology as legitimate or seek psychological help.