What Are The Current Beliefs Held By Conspiracy Theorists?

A new study explores the complex psyche of conspiracy theorists, attributing their beliefs to a combination of personality traits and motivations. The researchers found that reasons for believing in conspiracy theories can be grouped into three categories: the desire for understanding and certainty, the reliance on intuition, feeling a sense of antagonism and superiority, and the belief in a conspiracy by powerful and sinister groups, often political.

Conspiration theories have been a constant hum in the background for at least the past 100 years, and their widespread belief is cause for concern, according to Karen Douglas, PhD, a professor of social psychology at the University of Kent. Research links support in such theories to various psychological and political characteristics, as well as beliefs in 39 different conspiracy theories.

Conspiration theories have legitimized violence, impaired public health, and undermined democratic governance. Containing their harms begins with understanding how conspiracy theories start, why they persist, who is most likely to believe them, and whether they pose a threat to safety and democracy. Conspiracy theories are defined as theories that reject the standard explanation for an event and instead credit a covert group or organization with carrying out the conspiracy.

Despite being dismissed as unhinged beliefs held by a small number of paranoid idiots, research has shown that most Americans believe conspiracy theories of some sort. The psychology behind conspiracy theories offers explanations for why some people are more likely to believe conspiracy theories, even those that feel taken out of a movie.