Echoes of a Conspiracy: Birthers, Truthers, and the Cultivation of Extremism

Warner, Benjamin R.; Neville-Shepard, Ryan

doi:10.1080/01463373.2013.822407

Cited by 51 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Finally, more research is needed to determine how it is possible to successfully intervene on conspiracy theories. Existing research has shown that presenting counterconspiracy information may sometimes be effective, even among high conspiracy believers (Warner & Neville‐Shepard, ). Jolley and Douglas () showed that presenting counterconspiracy information before conspiracy information—in other words “inoculating” people against conspiracy theories—can reduce belief.…”

Section: Definitionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding Conspiracy Theories

Douglas

Uscinski

Sutton

et al. 2019

Political Psychology

962

907

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Scholarly efforts to understand conspiracy theories have grown significantly in recent years, and there is now a broad and interdisciplinary literature. In reviewing this body of work, we ask three specific questions. First, what factors are associated with conspiracy beliefs? Our review of the literature shows that conspiracy beliefs result from a range of psychological, political, and social factors. Next, how are conspiracy theories communicated? Here, we explain how conspiracy theories are shared among individuals and spread through traditional and social media platforms. Next, what are the societal risks and rewards associated with conspiracy theories? By focusing on politics and science, we argue that conspiracy theories do more harm than good. We conclude by suggesting several promising avenues for future research.

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Section: Definitionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Understanding Conspiracy Theories

Douglas

Uscinski

Sutton

et al. 2019

Political Psychology

962

907

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Given these issues, understanding the psychosocial ori gins of belief in conspiracy theories remains an important task for scholars. To this end, a small body of work has examined the form and content of conspiracy theories (e.g., Bost & Prunier, 2013;Raab, Auer, Ortlieb, & Carbon, 2013;van Prooijen & Jostmann, 2013), the context in which conspiracy theories flourish (e.g., Grzesiak Feldman, 2013;Warner & Neville Shepard, 2014), and the linguistic styles of conspiracy theorists (e.g., Wood & Douglas, 2013). Concurrently, a larger body of research has focused on individual difference correlates of belief in conspiracy theories, overturning an earlier approach that attempted to pathologise such beliefs (e.g., Groh, 1987;Robins & Post, 1997).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analytic thinking reduces belief in conspiracy theories

et al. 2014

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Belief in conspiracy theories has been associated with a range of negative health, civic, and social outcomes, requiring reliable methods of reducing such belief. Thinking dispositions have been highlighted as one possible factor associated with belief in conspiracy theories, but actual relationships have only been infrequently studied. In Study 1, we examined associations between belief in conspiracy theories and a range of measures of thinking dispositions in a British sample (N=990). Results indicated that a stronger belief in conspiracy theories was significantly associated with lower analytic thinking and open-mindedness and greater intuitive thinking. In Studies 2-4, we examined the causational role played by analytic thinking in relation to conspiracist ideation. In Study 2 (N=112), we showed that a verbal fluency task that elicited analytic thinking reduced belief in conspiracy theories. In Study 3 (N=189), we found that an alternative method of eliciting analytic thinking, which related to cognitive disfluency, was effective at reducing conspiracist ideation in a student sample. In Study 4, we replicated the results of Study 3 among a general population sample (N=140) in relation to generic conspiracist ideation and belief in conspiracy theories about the July 7, 2005, bombings in London. Our results highlight the potential utility of supporting attempts to promote analytic thinking as a means of countering the widespread acceptance of conspiracy theories.

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“…People seem to have a general tendency to interpret information that is in line with their own beliefs and to dismiss alternative possibilities that challenge these beliefs (Zaller, ). With respect to conspiracy formation, first insights show that the characteristics of the presented evidence for and against a conspiracy theory influenced participants' attribution of the likelihood of a conspiracy (Leman & Cinnirella, ; Raab, Auer, Ortlieb, & Carbon, ; Warner & Neville‐Shepard, ). In this manner, Uscinski et al () have revealed that information cues need to be met by an individual's predisposition towards a conspiracy in order to become effective.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conspiracy Formation Is in the Detail: On the Interaction of Conspiratorial Predispositions and Semantic Cues

Gebauer

Raab

Carbon

2016

Applied Cognitive Psychology

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Significant events are frequently followed by discussions about the event's 'true nature'. Yet, there is only little evidence whether the conspiratorial reasoning of conspiracy believers and sceptics is a priori determined, or if certain characteristics of information are responsible for provoking a polarization. We investigated how depicted causation (direct vs. indirect; Study 1) and intention (strong vs. weak purposeful; Study 2) might invoke a bias in believers and sceptics regarding conspiratorial reasoning about an ongoing event, namely, whether US investigations against FIFA were more or less likely to be seen as a conspiracy against Russia to sabotage the football World Cup in 2018. We revealed that judgments of conspiracy believers and sceptics about the event's 'true nature' are not a priori divided-in fact, conspiracy formation is only affected when direct causation or strong purposeful intentions were obvious. Results point to the relevance of conspiratorial predispositions and semantic cues in conspiracy formation.

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Echoes of a Conspiracy: Birthers, Truthers, and the Cultivation of Extremism

Cited by 51 publications

References 24 publications

Understanding Conspiracy Theories

Understanding Conspiracy Theories

Analytic thinking reduces belief in conspiracy theories

Conspiracy Formation Is in the Detail: On the Interaction of Conspiratorial Predispositions and Semantic Cues

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