Some conspiracy theories are so wild it's a wonder how anyone could possibly believe them, and then there are others that make you question what you think you know about..... well, everything.
But while you might think they just come from a random guy on Twitter, there's actually quite a lot of psychology that goes into conspiracies.
I mean, haven’t you wondered why some of the silliest and most bizarre rumors have stuck around for decades? Even before social media - so you can’t use that as an easy cop out.
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To get a better idea about the lesser known aspects of conspiracy theories, UNILAD spoke to Dr Daniel Jolley, a University of Nottingham Assistant Professor in Social Psychology.
Now don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you that the moon is made of cheese or some other out-there theory. But hopefully Jolley's comments will help offer insight into how conspiracies come to be and why people end up believing in them.
Where have conspiracy theories come from?
While social media might make you feel like there's a new conspiracy every other day, according to Professor Jolley, conspiracies have pretty much always been around.
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“Conspiracy theories have been around since the start of time," he explained.
“People have gone back, and they've looked at a whole range of different kinds of artefacts from back in the day to say look, these kind of [alternative] rhetorics, this kind of narrative was there as well.”
That being said, people are more likely to take to Twitter now to spread something rather than scrawl it on an ancient wall somewhere, meaning there's been a massive increase in speed when it comes to the communication of these theories.
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As well as this, there are specific kind of theories that tend to ‘fluctuate’ in frequency and popularity.
Jolley explained that conspiracy theories can grow and ‘flourish’ between different camps around political elections, but overall, they stay quite consistent in general life.
Why do people fall for conspiracy theories?
You might have your preconceptions about people who believe conspiracy theories, but not everyone is a tin-foil hat wearing odd-ball.
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In fact, Professor Jolley argued most people are normal enough, but are simply ‘trying to make sense of the chaotic world that we all live in.’
He explained how people sometimes come to alternative conclusions while, for example, trying to understand why a terrorist attack has occurred, why climate change is such a hot topic now, or simply while trying to make sense of things going on in their personal life.
He said: “When you are seeking these answers, a conspiracy theory that points a finger at someone who is perceived to be powerful, and instead blames them for that wrongdoing, whatever it is, can be particularly quite appealing."
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He added that a person's mistrust of institutions or other people can also factor in, and their ability - or inability - to manage their emotions can contribute to whether they ‘go down the rabbit hole’.
The three key ingredients to a conspiracy theory
Professor Jolley believes there are three things that are always included when a person creates a conspiracy theory - and these make up the concept of the ‘conspiracy kitchen’.
He said: “You've got an actor, which is always someone who's perceived to be a powerful group.
“It’s never someone mundane or meek, it is always a sinister, perceived powerful group.”
He added that many conspiracies focus on immigrants or those in the LGBTQ+ community. While they are marginalized groups, they can be perceived as threatening and therefore powerful.
The professor continued: “[The second] thing is then an action, this [powerful group] doing something.
“[And the third] thing is the motive: i.e, typically it’s always them forcing something sinister to help them, so self interest, for power or money."
Why are conspiracy theories dangerous?
So why does it all matter anyway? People will believe what they want to believe and that's that, right?
Well, it’s not really as straightforward as that. Simply put, thoughts turn into beliefs, and beliefs can turn into action and that's when we start to have real-world implications.
The professor noted that whether a conspiracy is true or not, it can inspire an individual to act against this alleged powerful aggressor.
He stated: “It can ultimately lead to violent extremism.”
And we have seen this across the world and across history, people believing something that is not true and taking action.
How can you spot a conspiracy theory?
Now, the big question is how to spot a conspiracy, since they don’t all sound as ludicrous as you might think.
Well, spotting them takes a lil' dose of critical thinking, and it's easier than you might expect.
One clear giveaway is that it alludes to a vague large group, according to Professor Jolley.
He said: “You find that it's just the group, i.e. the government, Jewish people, Muslim immigrants.
“It's more arbitrary, like everyone in this group is best friends, and they're all involved in this together. I think for me, those are red flags.”
But even if it does sound like nonsense and a red flag, Jolley said it's important not to just dismiss it outright.
The professor explained: “Let's see what others are saying. Let's do a quick search to see, 'what is the rhetoric around this? Are other people who I trust saying a similar thing?'"
He reiterated the importance of asking who is ‘they’ and ‘why’ are these people allegedly doing these things. If there are no truly satisfactory answers, with poor evidence or sourcing, it's probably closer to disinformation.
It is also integral not to fall into the pattern of ‘Yes, I agree with that’ just because it already meets what you already believe about a particular group.
How can you help someone who's fallen for a theory?
With some theories holding so much power, disproving a person who has fallen for a conspiracy theory with overwhelming evidence to the contrary isn’t always the best course of action.
As conspiracies can become a part of someone's belief system or identity, many will simply reject the 'truth' and go deeper down the rabbit hole.
Professor Jolley argued: “It's good to approach it with empathy in a way, in a sense of humanizing.”
He insisted it's more productive to address the needs of the individual; to understand the world, the need to be understood and to be part of a community instead of name-calling and debunking aggressively.
He closed by saying: “So therefore, rather than dealing with the conspiracy theory and saying, ‘here's the reasons why climate change is happening and vaccines are safe’, rather let's think about what that actual journey is, and how can we try and support it with community aspects and, indeed, digital literacy.”
UNILAD's new Stripped Back series is released from September 23 and focuses on conspiracy theories, featuring interviews with believers, experts and others impacted by the claims.
Topics: Conspiracy Theories, Science
Gerrard Kaonga