The mediation and moderating roles of infodemic literacy on the relationship between belief in conspiracy theories and COVID-19 vaccine confidence

Objective: The aim of this study is to explore the association between infodemic literacy and beliefin conspiracy theories (BiCT), as well as COVID-19 vaccine confidence (VC). Additionally, thestudy examines the mediating and moderating roles of infodemic literacy in the relationship betweenBiCTs and COVID-19 vaccine confidence.Methods: This cross-sectional, descriptive, and correlational study was conducted with a sample of1,234 participants from Türkiye. The data were obtained through an online survey containing threedifferent scales and analyzed using SPSS V27 and PROCESS Macro.Results: The results showed that increased BiCT was negatively associated with COVID-19 VC(β=-0.49, p=0.001). Infodemic literacy, on the other hand, was associated with a reduction in BiCT(β=-0.09, p=0.003), an increase in COVID-19 VC (β=0.11, p=0.001), and an increased likelihoodof vaccine uptake (odds ratio= 1.38, p=0.012). Additionally, the mediation analysis suggested thatinfodemic literacy weakened the negative relationship between BiCT and COVID-19 VC [mediationindex= -0.007, 95% confidence interval (CI)= (-0.015 to -0.001)]. The moderation analysis, however,indicated that infodemic literacy did not significantly moderate the relationship between BiCT andVC [b=-0.07, 95% CI= (-0.168 to 0.032)].Conclusion: Infodemic literacy can be considered a comprehensive tool for strengthening individualsand communities against pandemic processes, due to its ability to reduce BiCT and its positivecontribution to the vaccination process. Greater emphasis should be placed on the importance ofdeveloping the necessary education and strategies to increase i nfodemic literacy.