The findings confirmed that poor sleep quality was linked to conspiracy belief, with depression being the strongest link between the two. In other words, increased depression helped explain why poor sleep quality is associated with conspiratorial thinking.

"Spite is the desire to 'level the playing field' by trying to knock someone else down, because it feels like there is no other choice. Conspiracy theories can serve as a way for individuals to satisfy this desire through rejecting expert opinion and scientific consensus."

The results, published on March 12 in the Journal of Health Psychology, suggest adding bad sleep quality on top of existing issues like depression can make people more susceptible to patently untrue conspiracies.

Was the moon landing fake — or are you just really tired? Not getting enough sleep on a consistent basis has been linked to a higher likelihood of believing conspiracy theories in a new study by the University of Nottingham.