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notapunk t1_iyntnqp wrote

If you were to make a recipe for the perfect conspiracy theory (widest adoption) what 'ingredients' would you use?

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GhostlandHum OP t1_iynvmlf wrote

Oh man, I feel like that's asking someone the best way to rob a bank or something... But it's not a bad question--I think there are different kinds of believers in conspiracy theories, but all theories are satisfying some basic psychological need, something that makes the believers feel good about themselves or lets them feel safe or comforted about their worldview, or lets them indulge in problematic views that are otherwise not acceptable in mainstream culture. So I'd work backwards from that? Like what psychological need do you want to tap into? From there, you'd want something that could easily accommodate conflicting evidence, so even things that "disproved" your theory could in fact be made to "prove" it. Lastly, you need something that holds out vague promises but never actually needs to deliver on those promises... like a Nostradamus prediction or an astrology reading or a Q drop, something that allows people to believe it's true even if you don't ever actually prove anything....

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notapunk t1_iynw6gc wrote

Thanks for the reply. There seems to be a good deal of overlap in the psychology of conspiracy theories and cults.

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GhostlandHum OP t1_iynwn2f wrote

Yeah, absolutely--I always think that the way we normally think of combating conspiracy theories ("just beat people over the head with facts and truth") doesn't work that well because what conspiracy theories are doing is solving a psychological need first and foremost. So the better way to combat them, I think, is to figure out what that psychological need is, and address that--it's sort of like a methadone treatment, where you kill the need for the drug, and then they abandon the drug and the conspiracy theory on their own.

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BenjaminHamnett t1_iyr3i68 wrote

Great answer, but I feel like I’ve seen a few real-time examples of core devotees seeing this coming from a distance and using this as the inverse of “lack of proof IS proof” trope. They are hyper aware of anything that’s taking attention away from their cult and say “see, they know were onto them, so they’re trying to distract us with staged events that take the wind out of our sails and make us look silly”

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