American Psychologist, Vol 81(4), May-Jun 2026, 463-477; doi:10.1037/amp0001635
Antisemitism and hostility toward Israel reliably co-occur, causing some to regard opposition to Israel as the “new antisemitism,” a socially acceptable way to express an ancient prejudice. Others dismiss new antisemitism as a specious rhetorical tactic used to shame and silence earnest critics of Israel. Three preregistered studies addressed this issue. Study 1 (N = 373) found that Time 1 antisemitism predicted Time 2 anti-Israel attitudes via conspiracy beliefs about Israel and Zionists. We named this pattern the “Conspiracies Mediated Model of New Antisemitism.” Study 2 (N = 243) cross-sectionally assessed the distinct mediational roles of anti-Israel conspiracies (Israel conspiring for itself), Zionist conspiracies (Jews conspiring for Israel), and Jewish-related conspiracies (Jews conspiring in ways unrelated to Israel). Conspiracies implicating Israel and Zionists again mediated the association between antisemitism and anti-Israel attitudes, but those related to Jews qua Jews did not. Study 3 (N = 493), using a three-time-point longitudinal design, showed that conspiracies related to Israel and Zionists, but not to Jews qua Jews, positively mediate the predictive relationship between antisemitism and anti-Israel beliefs. Across studies, the Conspiracies Mediated Model of New Antisemitism accounted for over 55% of the variance in anti-Israel attitudes—a substantial effect. Results were not due to a general conspiratorial mindset. Democrats, compared to Republicans, expressed less antisemitism but stronger anti-Israel attitudes and greater endorsement of anti-Israel and anti-Zionist conspiracies. These studies confirm that the relationship between antisemitism and anti-Israel hostility is reliable, predictive, and substantial, and that it is mediated by anti-Israel and anti-Zionist conspiracy beliefs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)