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Daniel Jolley

Assistant Professor in Social Psychology, Faculty of Science

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Biography

I am a social psychologist who takes a unique experimental approach to study the social psychological consequences of conspiracy theories.

I am an Assistant Professor in Social Psychology at the University of Nottingham, where I joined the School of Psychology in February 2022. Before joining Nottingham, I held academic posts at Northumbria University (Senior Lecturer, 2019 - 2022) and Staffordshire University (Lecturer in Psychology, 2015 - 2017; Senior Lecturer, 2017 - 2019). Before my lectureships, I was employed as a Research Associate at Lancaster University (2014 - 2015), working alongside Prof. Paul Taylor and industry partners.

I was awarded my social psychology PhD from the University of Kent in 2015. My PhD aimed to examine and attempt to address the social-psychological consequences of conspiracy theories. Since then, I have gained international recognition as an expert in the field of conspiracy theory psychology. My ongoing research continues to employ experimental methodologies to scrutinize the societal repercussions of conspiracy theories while also developing tools to mitigate their adverse effects. I have a strong publication record of high-quality publications (>27 journal publications, >4,627 citations) and have received research funding from organizations such as the Leverhulme Trust and the British Academy (>300k in total funding). I have also been awarded funding for several public engagement initiatives (>10k in total funding), such as part of ESRC's Festival of Social Sciences. I created and host Notts Psych Pod, the first podcast from the School of Psychology at the University of Nottingham. The podcast is a key platform for showcasing cutting-edge psychological research to non-academic audiences, including policymakers, prospective students, and the general public.

I have a passion for science communication, where I am often invited to give talks to stakeholders (e.g., Police Communicators at their Annual Conference) and the general public (e.g., Cheltenham Science Festival), and due to the timely and newsworthy nature of my research, I am regularly invited to speak to a variety of media outlets including TV, radio and print/digital media - for example, I have appeared on the popular U.S TV show Adam Ruins Everything, and recently my research has been featured on BBC One Show, BBC News, Sky News, TalkTV, City News (Toronto), CGTN (Europe), in New York Times, The Guardian, Financial Times, Huffington Post and Discover Magazine. I have given multiple live radio interviews, including appearing on BBC Five Live, TalkRADIO, BBC Scotland, and over 25 BBC UK Local stations. Over the last year, my media engagement reached an estimated 1 billion people. I have also given many public talks on my research (e.g., New Scientist Live, Cheltenham Science Festival, Standon Calling; in excess 60 in total) and actively work to use alternative outputs to communicate my research, such as commissioning artists to draw my research (thanks to I'm a Scientist for supporting this). With colleagues, I also developed the Kitchen Conspiracy, an outreach exhibit to introduce conspiracy theories.

Building on my science communication expertise, in 2024, I co-developed and launched a third-year specialist module on applying social psychology to societal issues. The module embedded public engagement skill development, culminating in an innovative assessment where students wrote for a lay audience. Supported by Assignment Preparation sessions, evaluations showed significant improvements in students' confidence and proficiency in communication skills, with 100% reporting improved abilities in 2024. The module has been praised for its unique structure and skill-building focus.

In recognition of these achievements, I have been shortlisted for three Knowledge Exchange and Impact Awards at the University of Nottingham, including the Rising Star Award (2024) and the Best Public Engagement Initiative (2024).

I am a Chartered Psychologist (CPsychol) of the British Psychological Society (BPS) and a Fellow of HEA (FHEA). I am an active member of the BPS, where I served for ten years on the BPS Social Psychology Section in various roles. I have also been an active member of an interdisciplinary COST network, Comparative Analysis of Conspiracy Theories. Broadly, I am active in community service. I have acted as a peer reviewer at over 70 journals and am currently an Associate Editor at the Journal of Applied Social Psychology (JASP) and the British Journal of Social Psychology (BJSP). I am an experienced mentor of undergraduate, postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers. Upholding academic quality, I am currently an Examiner Examiner for the MSc in Social and Applied Psychology at the University of East Anglia (UEA). I also have experience as an External and Internal PhD examiner.

You can learn more about my research on my website. You can also follow my updates on Twitter.

Research Summary

My internationally recognised research agenda tackles significant global issues that can harm the smooth running of societies. I take a unique experimental approach to studying the… read more

Current Research

My internationally recognised research agenda tackles significant global issues that can harm the smooth running of societies. I take a unique experimental approach to studying the social-psychological consequences of conspiracy theories and misinformation. Millions of people from across the globe believe in conspiracy theories that explain events as the result of secret, deliberate actions and cover-ups at the hands of powerful and malevolent groups. My research demonstrates the pervasive societal and psychological impact of conspiracy beliefs. These beliefs have been linked to disengagement from politics, diminished concern about environmental issues, and the erosion of trust in public health initiatives (BJP, 2014; PLOS ONE, 2014; Sexual Health, 2020). They are also associated with support for violence (BJSP, 2020) and engagement in unethical behaviours (BJSP, 2019; Social Psychology, 2023). My recent studies have explored how economic hardship fosters feelings of anomie, which heightens belief in conspiracy theories targeting marginalized groups, amplifying anti-immigrant sentiment and societal polarization (see a Project Report here). I have also demonstrated that conspiracy beliefs can distract from systemic inequalities, reducing the likelihood of social and political change (Political Psychology, 2018).

In addressing these challenges, I have tested interventions to mitigate their effects, showing that counterarguments can combat anti-vaccine conspiracies (JASP, 2017), while intergroup contact (EJSP, 2023) and social norms (GPIR, 2021; PLOSONE, 2021) can reduce conspiracy beliefs. My high-quality publications, cited over 4,600 times (h-index 16, Google Scholar), continue to influence the field, with most ranked in the top 5% of research outputs tracked by Altimetric for online attention.

We have recently developed and validated a conspiracy beliefs questionnaire suitable for young people called the Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire (ACBQ). You can find more information on the ACBQ here. The British Academy funded the project.

You can find details on all my publications here or on the Open Science Framework.

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