Conspiracy Thinking, Tolerance, and Democracy

2018 ◽  
pp. 187-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven M. Smallpage
Keyword(s):  
Central Question ◽  
University Professors ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The Public ◽  
Thoughtful Reflection ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
Similarities And Differences ◽  
The One ◽  
Independent Thinking ◽  
Conspiracy Thinking

When university professors engage with conspiracy theories, the public is pushed to the limit in terms of what it will or will not tolerate. Professors that publicly hold conspiracy beliefs force the central question of political tolerance: what is the line between the intellectual inquiry that allows for communities to flourish, on the one hand, and the expression of viewpoints that undermine that community’s integrity altogether, on the other? The line is blurry, as careful skepticism underlies both the best academic work and the psychology of conspiracy thinking. Since conspiracy theorists often anger, provoke, and sometimes harass the public, we must decide as a community if we will tolerate professors who hold controversial conspiracy beliefs. Such decisions require thoughtful reflection on the similarities and differences between conspiracy thinking and its relationship to desirable traits of democratic citizens, like tolerance, independent thinking, and academic freedom.

scholarly journals Role of Conspiracy Mentality and Paranormal Beliefs in Predicting Conspiracy Beliefs Among Neopagans

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-97
Author(s):  
Asbjørn Dyrendal ◽  
Leif Kennair ◽  
James Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Political Identity ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Single Item ◽  
Political Identification ◽  
Gender And Education ◽  
Paranormal Beliefs ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
Conspiracy Thinking

Recent studies on conspiracy thinking has concluded that the strongest predictor of the tendency towards conspiratorial thinking is a one-dimensional construct-conspiracy mentality-that is relatively stable over time and valid across cultures. Lantian et al. (2016) found that a single, elaborate question can work as a measure of conspiracy beliefs. We assess the validity of this question for an untypical, religious group: self-identified Neopagans. We also test some recent findings on the relation between conspiracy thinking and paranormal beliefs, attitudes towards group equality, political identification, age, gender, and education. The general patterns hold up well in our investigation, but there was a clear distinction between conspiracy theories about powerful actors and those about minorities. The single-item measure was the largest predictor of the former kind of conspiracy belief followed by level of paranormal beliefs. Anti-egalitarianism and holding a right-wing political identity were the strongest predictors of conspiracy beliefs about minorities. Education was negatively related to conspiracy beliefs of all kinds.

Antisemitic Conspiracy Theories and Violent Extremism on the Far Right: a Public Health Approach to Counter-Radicalization

2019 ◽  
pp. 1-18
Author(s):  
Bradley Byington
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Health Approach ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Far Right ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The Public ◽  
Societal Benefits ◽  
Violent Extremism ◽  
Conspiracy Thinking

Conspiracy theories, and especially antisemitic conspiracy theories, form a core ideological component of right-wing violent extremism in the United States. This article argues that conspiracy narratives and their psychological antecedents are key to understanding the ideological appeal of right-wing extremist formations such as white supremacist and Christian Identity movements, providing insight into the motivations and behaviors of those individual participants who become sufficiently radicalized to carry out terrorist actions. It is further proposed that standard radicalization models can be enhanced for applications specific to right-wing extremism through an understanding of conspiracy thinking (both antisemitic and otherwise), and that this understanding can assist in addressing the motivated roots of the ideologies that sustain this particular type of violent extremism through a public health approach to counter-radicalization that aims to “inoculate” the public against the cognitive tendencies exemplified in antisemitic con- spiracy theories and in conspiracist culture more generally. The proposed approach would complement existing efforts in a unique way, as it would have the potential not only to improve public security, but also to provide further societal benefits by countering other negative tendencies associated with conspiracy belief (for example, decreased intention to vaccinate). This would provide an exceptional cost versus benefit ratio while supporting existing counter-radicalization programs and leaving them intact.

scholarly journals Coronavirus conspiracy beliefs, mistrust, and compliance with government guidelines in England

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Freeman ◽  
Felicity Waite ◽  
Laina Rosebrock ◽  
Ariane Petit ◽  
Chiara Causier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
General Population ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The World ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
Antibody Tests ◽  
Very High ◽  
Reduced Adherence ◽  
Conspiracy Thinking

Abstract Background An invisible threat has visibly altered the world. Governments and key institutions have had to implement decisive responses to the danger posed by the coronavirus pandemic. Imposed change will increase the likelihood that alternative explanations take hold. In a proportion of the general population there may be strong scepticism, fear of being misled, and false conspiracy theories. Our objectives were to estimate the prevalence of conspiracy thinking about the pandemic and test associations with reduced adherence to government guidelines. Methods A non-probability online survey with 2501 adults in England, quota sampled to match the population for age, gender, income, and region. Results Approximately 50% of this population showed little evidence of conspiracy thinking, 25% showed a degree of endorsement, 15% showed a consistent pattern of endorsement, and 10% had very high levels of endorsement. Higher levels of coronavirus conspiracy thinking were associated with less adherence to all government guidelines and less willingness to take diagnostic or antibody tests or to be vaccinated. Such ideas were also associated with paranoia, general vaccination conspiracy beliefs, climate change conspiracy belief, a conspiracy mentality, and distrust in institutions and professions. Holding coronavirus conspiracy beliefs was also associated with being more likely to share opinions. Conclusions In England there is appreciable endorsement of conspiracy beliefs about coronavirus. Such ideas do not appear confined to the fringes. The conspiracy beliefs connect to other forms of mistrust and are associated with less compliance with government guidelines and greater unwillingness to take up future tests and treatment.

Empowerment as a Tool to Reduce Belief in Conspiracy Theories

2018 ◽  
pp. 432-442 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan-Willem van Prooijen
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Global Warming ◽  
Procedural Justice ◽  
Political Polarization ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The Public ◽  
Decision Outcomes ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
Decision Making Processes

Conspiracy theories can be harmful for public health, global warming, safety, conflict, and political polarization. What interventions help reduce the appeal of conspiracy theories? It is well-known that conspiracy theories flourish among citizens who feel powerless and out of control, however I argue that the opposite is also true: that feeling empowered and in control of one’s social environment reduces belief in conspiracy theories. Given this, authorities can reduce conspiracy beliefs among the public by installing procedural justice principles in decision-making processes. Procedural justice increases feelings of empowerment and trust, even among followers who disagree with the decision outcomes.

scholarly journals Traumatic rift: How conspiracy beliefs undermine cohesion after societal trauma?

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-93 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michal Bilewicz ◽  
Marta Witkowska ◽  
Myrto Pantazi ◽  
Theofilos Gkinopoulos ◽  
Olivier Klein
Keyword(s):  
Military Officers ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Airplane Crash ◽  
Internal Conflicts ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Societal Trauma ◽  
Conspiracy Thinking

Collective traumas may often lead to deep societal divides and internal conflicts. In this article, we propose that conspiracy theories emerging in response to victimizing events may play a key role in the breakdown of social cohesion. We performed a nationally representative survey in Poland (N = 965) two years after the Smoleńsk airplane crash in which the Polish president was killed, together with 95 political officials and high-ranking military officers. The survey found that people endorsing conspiratorial accounts of the Smoleńsk catastrophe preferred to distance themselves from conspiracy non-believers, while skeptics preferred greater distance to conspiracy believers. We also examined the role of people’s belief in the uniqueness of in-group historical suffering as an important antecedent of both conspiracy thinking and hostility towards outgroups (conspiracy believers and non-believers).

scholarly journals Transparent communication about negative features of COVID-19 vaccines decreases acceptance but increases trust

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (29) ◽  
pp. e2024597118
Author(s):  
Michael Bang Petersen ◽  
Alexander Bor ◽  
Frederik Jørgensen ◽  
Marie Fly Lindholt
Keyword(s):  
Rapid Development ◽  
Vaccine Uptake ◽  
Vaccine Acceptance ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The Public ◽  
Health Authorities ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
Vaccine Information ◽  
Representative Samples

During the rapid development and rolling out of vaccines against COVID-19, researchers have called for an approach of “radical transparency,” in which vaccine information is transparently disclosed to the public, even if negative information can decrease vaccine uptake. Consistent with theories about the psychology of conspiracy beliefs, these calls predict that a lack of transparency may reduce trust in health authorities and may facilitate the spread of conspiracy theories, which may limit the long-term capabilities of health authorities during and after the pandemic. On the basis of preregistered experiments conducted on large, representative samples of Americans and Danes (N > 13,000), the current study contrasts the effects of vague vaccine communication with transparent communication, which discloses either positive or negative vaccine features. The evidence demonstrates that transparent negative communication may indeed harm vaccine acceptance here and now but that it increases trust in health authorities. Furthermore, the alternative of vague, reassuring communication does not increase vaccine acceptance either and leads to both lower trust and higher endorsement of conspiracy theories.

Classified or Coverup? The Effect of Redactions on Conspiracy Theory Beliefs

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan Nyhan ◽  
Franklin Dickinson ◽  
Sasha Dudding ◽  
Enxhi Dylgjeri ◽  
Eric Neiley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Conspiracy Theory ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The Public ◽  
Conspiracy Beliefs ◽  
Epistemic Theory

AbstractConspiracy theories are prevalent among the public. Governments frequently release official documents attempting to explain events that inspire these beliefs. However, these documents are often heavily redacted, a practice that lay epistemic theory suggests might be interpreted as evidence for a conspiracy. To investigate this possibility, we tested the effect of redactions on beliefs in a well-known conspiracy theory. Results from two preregistered experiments indicate that conspiracy beliefs were higher when people were exposed to seemingly redacted documents compared to when they were exposed to unredacted documents that were otherwise identical. In addition, unredacted documents consistently lowered conspiracy beliefs relative to controls while redacted documents had reduced or null effects, suggesting that lay epistemic interpretations of the redactions undermined the effect of information in the documents. Our findings, which do not vary by conspiracy predispositions, suggest policymakers should be more transparent when releasing documents to refute misinformation.

scholarly journals From Literary Culture to Post-Communist Media: Romanian Conspiracism

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 31-40
Author(s):  
Onoriu Colăcel ◽  
Corneliu Pintilescu
Keyword(s):  
Literary Culture ◽  
Body Politic ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Body ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Third ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Conservation Of Natural Resources ◽  
Conspiracy Thinking

Abstract Conspiracy thinking has a long history in Romanian literary culture. In the early 21st century, what counts as a conspiracy theory in the mainstream of Romanian life is nevertheless elusive enough to keep the public engaged more than ever before. The growing number of attempts to address the gap in knowledge with regard to local conspiracy theories is proof that concern with their possibly harmful consequences is on the rise as well. For most of the conspiracy-minded, the topics of the day are specific threats posed to post-communist Romania and its people. In the main, conspiratorial beliefs fall into three main fields. Namely, they come across as 1) conspiracy theories against the body politic of the nation, 2) health-related conspiracy theories and 3) conspiracy theories on use and conservation of natural resources. While the first two overlap and build on the tradition of home-grown populism, the third is mostly a borrowing from Western media sources. However, the most influential instances of Romanian conspiracism posit that the well-being of the nation’s body politic and that of individuals’ own bodies are one and the same.

Ruler Visibility and Popular Belonging in the Ottoman Empire, 1808-1908

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Darin Stephanov
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Ottoman Empire ◽  
The Other ◽  
Group Consciousness ◽  
Central Question ◽  
Point Model ◽  
The Everyday ◽  
National Movements ◽  
Tanzimat Reforms ◽  
The One

‘What do we really speak of when we speak of the modern ethno-national mindset and where shall we search for its roots?’ This is the central question of a book arguing that the periodic ceremonial intrusion into the everyday lives of people across the Ottoman Empire, which the annual royal birthday and accession-day celebrations constituted, had multiple, far-reaching, and largely unexplored consequences. On the one hand, it brought ordinary subjects into symbolic contact with the monarch and forged lasting vertical ties of loyalty to him, irrespective of language, location, creed or class. On the other hand, the rounds of royal celebration played a key role in the creation of new types of horizontal ties and ethnic group consciousness that crystallized into national movements, and, after the empire’s demise, national monarchies. The book discusses the themes of public space/sphere, the Tanzimat reforms, millet, modernity, nationalism, governmentality, and the modern state, among others. It offers a new, thirteen-point model of modern belonging based on the concept of ruler visibility.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document