Abstract

Two exploratory studies investigate how political trust influences the perception of pseudo-profound bullshit (N = 199) and how bullshit receptivity relates to analytical thinking and basic personal values in Latvia. Our findings reveal that the level of trust in a politician is positively related to ratings of both pseudo-profound and profound statements. Individuals are significantly more receptive to pseudo-profound bullshit from a politician they trust more versus less. To a lesser extent, individuals rate profound statements as more profound if they come from a more trusted politician versus a less trusted one, emphasizing the role of individual-level trust as a particularly important factor in the evaluation of information depicted by a politician. Contrary to previous literature, higher analytical thinking, described by Cognitive Reflection Test scores, was not significantly related to the ratings of either pseudo-profound bullshit or profound statements. The importance of basic values had small but significant correlations with the evaluation of profound statements. Additionally, the role of values in evaluating profound statements highlights the influence of personal beliefs and principles on perception.