Conspiracy Beliefs, Institutional Mistrust, and Health‐Related Behaviours During the COVID‐19 Pandemic in Burkina Faso: A Mediation Analysis

Key Points

• Health-related behaviours are influenced by conspiracy beliefs and institutional mistrust, as shown by the findings.
• The analysis reveals that individuals trust information from religious and traditional leaders over other sources.
• The method included mediation analysis to understand the connections between beliefs and behaviours during the pandemic.
• Supporting initiatives to rebuild trust in institutions may help combat conspiracy beliefs during future health crises.

Abstract