The research article, titled “Political, Psychological, and Social Correlates of Cryptocurrency Ownership,” was published Wednesday in PLOS One, a peer-reviewed, open-access journal published by the Public Library of Science. The article was authored by Shane Littrell of the Johns School of Global Affairs and Public Policy. Munch at the University of Toronto, and Casey Klofstad and Joseph E. Ushinsky from the Department of Political Science at the University of Miami.

“We surveyed 2,001 American adults in 2022 to examine associations between cryptocurrency ownership and individual-level political, psychological, and social characteristics,” they wrote. “The analysis showed that 30% of our sample owned some form of cryptocurrency and that these people demonstrate a variety of political beliefs and identities.” The authors described their observations as follows:

"We also found that cryptocurrency ownership was associated with belief in conspiracy theories, 'dark' personality characteristics (such as the 'Dark Book' of narcissism, Machiavellianism, psychopathy and sadism) and increased use of alternative and fringe social media platforms. When examining more in a comprehensive multivariate model, the variables that most strongly predicted cryptocurrency ownership were men relying on alternative/fringe social media as a primary source of news, argumentativeness, and aversion to authoritarianism.”

The article describes that “given the growing popularity of what many consider risky financial behavior, scholars have begun to study the political, psychological and social characteristics of cryptocurrency users to better understand the profile of people attracted to this type of investment. Some preliminary research suggests that individuals who have owned cryptocurrency differ from non-owners, both in terms of their political views and identity, and in terms of their psychological profile.”

The authors went on to share, “Our results here indicate that cryptocurrency buyers, on average, share an eclectic mix of political views, identities, and predispositions,” highlighting:

This finding contrasts with past claims that cryptocurrencies are some kind of financial haven for the “far right.”

“We live in an era where incumbents are under attack, be it political institutions or financial markets. Both can lead to negative externalities (i.e. Economic instability). Thus, understanding their causes is vital,” the authors concluded.

What do you think about the findings regarding the political and psychological characteristics of cryptocurrency owners? Do you agree with the authors of the article?