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added_chaos t1_j9gwtep wrote

Someone requested and paid for that stock image at one time

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Cult_ureS t1_j9jml1h wrote

Edit: I need to preface this comment. There are Theories about Conspiracies, like the Iran Contra affair, the Snowden leaks, Iraq WMD to control the oil, etc. Then there are Conspiracy Theories like the elites secretly being aliens or COVID being an intentional planned and sanctioned release to control the Earth's population. These are not the same. They often get lumped in together, and perhaps that's by design.

This should be common sense but science always needs to be confirmed.

The core subconscious reason behind believing in (untrue) conspiracy theories is the desire to know something others don't. If you buy into the deeper theories with no basis in known reality (i.e. world governments are ultimately controlled by aliens) then your brain is telling your ego that you have more knowledge and power than the 99% of the population ("the sheep") and you are aware, while they are simply not intelligent enough to see, not as intelligent as you.

There are other factors at play, mainly distrust of authority, and there certainly are real conspiracies involving the elites of the world, but for the vast majority of 'conspiracy theorists' that seek out and identify with obscure conspiracy theories with no basis in reality, it's a self-protection mechanism. Likely stemming from not enough social bonding / support network - either in childhood or later on.

I've never had a solid logical debate with anyone calling someone a sheep.

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added_chaos t1_j9jo6u1 wrote

While that’s probably correct, I was just commenting on the stock image being funny

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LandmassWave t1_ja53epz wrote

>If you buy into the deeper theories with no basis in known reality (i.e. world governments are ultimately controlled by aliens) then your brain is telling your ego that you have more knowledge and power than the 99% of the population ("the sheep") and you are aware, while they are simply not intelligent enough to see, not as intelligent as you.

The irony is these researchers are displaying a similar bias - "we're more knowledgeable than people who believe conspiracy theories".

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Mete11uscimber t1_j9hp5de wrote

I'm glad that they took a sample from a country other than the US. We seem to have a high percentage of conspiracy theorists compared to other countries, so that's a good control method. I don't think they broke any new ground on the topic as it's pretty obvious that the belief in conspiracy theories tends to stem from fear, but it is an interesting read nonetheless.

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WildAppearance t1_j9jdnfy wrote

That isn't exactly what they found, though. They found that emotional dysregulation is correlated with belief in conspiracy theories. They specifically did not propose a cause, instead saying more research is needed.

I'll just repeat what always has to be said when scientists study the "obvious": it's still worth studying rigorously, and tbh I don't know of any other studies that touch on this specific correlation.

I'd also disagree that this study suggests that "fear" is the root cause of why people fall for conspiracy theories. Fear is a universal human emotion, but not everybody is a conspiracy theorist. Rather, inability or lack of learned skill in regulating emotions in general is what predicts susceptibility to conspiracy theories. Based on my own anecdotal experiences I could guess that the inability to regulate emotions like anger and sadness are also important in making someone susceptible to conspiracy thinking.

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squanchaay t1_j9jigfx wrote

And excitement. I can imagine how momentum can build in someones mind when they hear satisfying, simple points being made for something truthfully boring or complex.

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LandmassWave t1_ja50a7f wrote

>We seem to have a high percentage of conspiracy theorists compared to other countries

We've been lied to by our institutions too many times.

The reason I don't buy into BD911, or we didn't land on the moon, is because the conspiracy would be too hard to execute.

It sure isn't that the government has earned the benefit of the doubt.

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Ixm01ws6 t1_j9h114w wrote

water and air is fine in east palestine, nothing to worry about folks.

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dr-freddy-112 t1_j9ilqs9 wrote

I don't think they're talking about conspiracies that seem likely or are common. Probably more akin to Pizza Gate, Flat Earth, and things like that.

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check_out_my_wood t1_j9kzhyz wrote

Right and this is part of the problem. Applying "conspiracy theory" to any topic – even the ones that have an incredible amount of empirical and official evidence – lumps everyone into the "crazies" group.

I don't believe the earth is flat, but I'm often suspicious of our government's motivations. These are not the same thing, but treating them the same keeps people away from spending any time forming an informed opinion.

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dr-freddy-112 t1_j9kzz0b wrote

I'm suspicious of some of the things surrounding 9/11. I'm suspicious of the train derailments and believe that it might be related to domestic terrorism that our government is keeping quiet while they investigate. I'm suspicious of our government in general.

But without enough evidence to make a factual claim, I'm going to keep that as a suspicion and not run around claiming that it's a fact. I think that's what separates reasonable suspicion from conspiracy theorists.

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Cult_ureS t1_j9leimw wrote

> I'm suspicious of the train derailments and believe that it might be related to domestic terrorism that our government is keeping quiet while they investigate. I'm suspicious of our government in general.

Did you know The Bureau of Transportation Statistics records 54,539 train derailments between 1990 to 2021, an average of 1,704 per year?

> But without enough evidence to make a factual claim, I'm going to keep that as a suspicion and not run around claiming that it's a fact. I think that's what separates reasonable suspicion from conspiracy theorists.

Most people think the same, until it hits mainstream or alt media and their social group starts repeating it, then suddenly it's nearly indisputable fact to them.

We can be suspicious of the government, and we can be suspicious of media, but it's important to realize when things seem to be synchronously happening, and have been in the media at the same time, that it's likely not the cause/effect we may think it is.

‘If a lie is only printed often enough, it becomes a quasi-truth, and if such a truth is repeated often enough, it becomes an article of belief, a dogma, and men will die for it.’

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InfraCanuck t1_j9jexev wrote

Conspiracy theories. Not actual environmental disasters.

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FollowKick t1_j9jgzvf wrote

Right. The conspiracy theory here would be “They caused the chemical spill on purpose.”

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BuffaloOk7264 t1_j9k8r87 wrote

There’s also that a conspiracy to neglect safety maintenance through attacking unions and profit maximizing are destroying infrastructure and killing communities and individuals.

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psilocybinjellyfish t1_j9hqfko wrote

Maybe people who think otherwise should try being less anxious and paranoid. Drink the water and breathe the Ohioan air, you schizophrenics!!

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LandmassWave t1_ja521w9 wrote

The EPA said it's safe and only Putin loving magats would question the government.

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Jazzlike-Drop23 t1_j9j7md1 wrote

This makes sense. When I was in the midst of a horrific midlife crisis, I got right into conspiracy theories.

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Manofalltrade t1_j9htttq wrote

As a person with an almost inhuman level of emotional self awareness and regulation (yay childhood), I actually recognized that this was probably why I was never “baptized in the Holy Spirit” while I was still a Christian. That wasn’t the tipping point for why became atheist, but it did hold the door open.

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Koffeekage t1_j9hyoke wrote

Conspiracies like what? The gulf of Tonkin? Or weapons of mass destruction in Iraq?

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zensins t1_j9hzrkw wrote

Pizzagate, Birtherism, JFK coming back, any other number of Q "drops".

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8to24 t1_j9jglwj wrote

If I tell you a thousand tales and only two of them are true would you not consider me terribly unreliable?

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LandmassWave t1_ja51pc7 wrote

It's a lot more than 2 in 1000. It's so bad that the CBC infamously wrote "Conspiracy theorists keep being proven right. Here's why that's dangerous."

That required more than a broken clock being right twice a day.

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LandmassWave t1_ja51fzl wrote

Tuskegee experiments. Lab leak theory. Russiagate.

Then you get the ones in the middle where the theory is an exaggeration.

Bush didn't orchestrate 9/11 but the government did try to cover up the real perpetrator (Prince Bandar).

Comet Pizza wasn't a venue, but we've had multiple sexual predators in very high places exposed since 2017.

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skribbledthoughtz t1_j9ki748 wrote

Would this apply to belief in religion as well?

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LeaTheTrippyHermit t1_j9sntum wrote

No, but belief in religion has been linked with an insufficient ability to use logic and reason by pewresearch.org

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ThyShirtIsBlue t1_j9ieoz9 wrote

This is just what they want you to think, but don't worry, JFK junior will be back any day now to set the record straight.

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jnelsoni t1_j9iilin wrote

Michael Jackson is already back in the public eye, and working to fight the deep state. Not many people have figured it out yet, but George Santos is actually the king of pop.

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LeaTheTrippyHermit t1_j9sno21 wrote

Bah ha ha! I have been clinically diagnosed with emotional dysregulation, and I laugh at conspiracy theorists.

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futureshocked2050 t1_j9uwid2 wrote

And good lord do we not live in a world that loves to keep you emotionally dysregulated.

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zeldestein t1_j9j0qki wrote

Belief in conspiracies would definitely fall under mental illness if not for the fact that many conspiracies are actually true and are continuously proven as such. It is perfectly normal for people to start believing in conspiracies if the level of trust between the institutions and public declines. The two are heavily correlated.

We're all "dysregulated", depressed and anxious because everything around us is dysfunctional and threatening.

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fhrftryddhhhhgrffg t1_j9jc00o wrote

Lot of claims and no proof going on here big dawg. Regulate them emotions I spose.

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ImaginaryFly1 t1_j9gsvg9 wrote

Today’s conspiracy theories are tomorrow’s reality.

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Little_Duckling t1_j9h0xh8 wrote

1 out of 100 times, sure.

The rest of the time it’s Jade Helm, or Pizzagate, or Obama’s birth certificate, or fluoride being used for mind control, or Jewish Space Lasers

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Chaseus_Clay t1_j9i25ye wrote

The problem is that the things you mentioned get put in the "conspiracy theory" category when they should be in the "ramblings of bitter, uneducated or mentally ill people" category.

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