I've always thought conspiracy theories made sense.
Not the theories themselves, which are generally nonsensical, but the fact that people create them.
Positive thinking is a kind of conspiracy theory too. (Ya got proof for that?) More benign on the surface, it can also be used for harm. (Stay in abusive situations, God is testing you... it's for your own good, etc.)
Both approaches––everything's negative; everything is a gift––are cognitive survival tactics.
When the world seems hostile by design, Satan isn't hard to believe in. Or maybe it's the Illuminati.
I hear about both rather a lot at work, from people who are as smart as any others I've ever met, but much more disenfranchised (politically, socially, educationally).
It was fun to come across the Conspiracy Theory Handbook-- from the School of Psychological Science and Center for Climate Change Communication (in Australia). The handbook lays out how and why conspiratorial thinking works.
We've all got unexamined beliefs, cognitive biases, etc. Conspiratorial thinking isn't about intelligence, per se. It's about lack of control, choice, power.
Arguing with conspiracists can be futile if their beliefs are entirely enclosed:
Along those lines, this article in The Atlantic:
www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/08/conversation-christian-picciolini/595543
"A Reformed White Nationalist [Christian Picciolini] discusses what it takes to de-radicalize far-right extremists: Says the Worst Is Yet to Come"
Not the theories themselves, which are generally nonsensical, but the fact that people create them.
Positive thinking is a kind of conspiracy theory too. (Ya got proof for that?) More benign on the surface, it can also be used for harm. (Stay in abusive situations, God is testing you... it's for your own good, etc.)
Both approaches––everything's negative; everything is a gift––are cognitive survival tactics.
When the world seems hostile by design, Satan isn't hard to believe in. Or maybe it's the Illuminati.
I hear about both rather a lot at work, from people who are as smart as any others I've ever met, but much more disenfranchised (politically, socially, educationally).
It was fun to come across the Conspiracy Theory Handbook-- from the School of Psychological Science and Center for Climate Change Communication (in Australia). The handbook lays out how and why conspiratorial thinking works.
We've all got unexamined beliefs, cognitive biases, etc. Conspiratorial thinking isn't about intelligence, per se. It's about lack of control, choice, power.
Conspiracy thinking is associated with feelings of reduced control and perceived threat. When people feel like they have lost control of a situation, their conspiracist tendencies increase.The handbook is full of helpful descriptions--the word "self-sealing" for instance. Isn't that great?
Arguing with conspiracists can be futile if their beliefs are entirely enclosed:
The self-sealing nature of conspiracy theories means that any evidence disproving a theory may be interpreted as further evidence for the conspiracy. . . . Rather than basing their beliefs on external evidence, conspiracy theorists’ belief system speaks mainly to itself....But it's not always futile. Ridiculing people doesn't help. But people with cred--people who've been there--can be effective.
Along those lines, this article in The Atlantic:
www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2019/08/conversation-christian-picciolini/595543
"A Reformed White Nationalist [Christian Picciolini] discusses what it takes to de-radicalize far-right extremists: Says the Worst Is Yet to Come"
I've found that many conspiracy theories often contain a germ of truth. Society IS inequitable and discriminatory. Rich people DO help and look out for each other. You can see how people work from those truths and come up with some wild theories to explain it all and how it works!
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