Paranoia and conspiracy thinking

Greenburgh, Anna; Raihani, Nichola

doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101362

Cited by 22 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…This is perhaps surprising. First, the popular preconception is that paranoia and conspiracy theorizing is associated with loneliness and isolation (25). This does not seem to be the case in our data.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 61%

“…Self-reference -the extent to which one is the focus of the conspiracy, is one feature that some posit is more relevant to clinical delusions than paranoia on a broader continuum (25). However, in our data people with greater referentiality were no differently protected by the sacred canopy of assumed shared belief (Figure S2).…”

Section: Resultscontrasting

confidence: 48%

“…Finally, delusion may not merely be an extreme form of conspiracy theorizing. It appears that delusions might implicate the sufferer more directly in the plot (25) (1). However, our effects were carried by the persecutory aspects of paranoia rather than by the extent to which events refer to the self (Figure S2).…”

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Assumed agreement about paranoid conspiracies in social networks protects against distress

Suthaharan¹,

Corlett²

2022

Preprint

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Paranoia is the belief that others intend you harm. It is related to conspiracy theories, wherein those others represent an organized faction, coordinating the harm against self and others, and violating societal norms. Current psychological studies of paranoid conspiracy theorizing focus either on the individual or their broader social network. Likewise, theories of belief formation and updating often contain individual level processes as well as broader interpersonal and organizational factors. Here we examine paranoia and conspiracy theorizing in terms of individual behavioral predictors (performance on a probabilistic reversal learning task which assays belief updating) as well as social sensing: we ask participants to report the features of their social network, including whether their friends and acquaintances share their paranoid conspiratorial beliefs. We find that people who believe paranoid conspiracy theories expect more volatility during the task. They also assume that members of their social network share their paranoid beliefs. Critically, those participants with larger social networks and greater assumed belief tend to harbor their conspiratorial beliefs with less emotional distress and expect less volatility in the task. This is evidence that, like political and religious beliefs, conspiracy theories may flourish under a sacred canopy of belief consensus. These data suggest that friends and acquaintances may serve as sources of credulity and moving between them may sustain conspiracy beliefs when there is detraction. This hybrid individual/social account may shed light on clinical paranoia and persecutory delusion, wherein disability is defined normatively, and social supports are fewer.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 61%

Section: Resultscontrasting

confidence: 48%

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Assumed agreement about paranoid conspiracies in social networks protects against distress

Suthaharan¹,

Corlett²

2022

Preprint

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“…It can be studied at the intrapersonal level, as conspiracy beliefs are related to individual difference variables [11,12], and are rooted in emotions and intuitions [13e15], and basic cognitive processes [16e20]. Conspiracy beliefs can be studied at the interpersonal level, as conspiracy beliefs increase following social rejection experiences [21], and are associated with for instance power differences [22], interpersonal trust [23], and paranoia [24]. And, conspiracy beliefs can be studied at the (intra-and inter-)group level, as conspiracy beliefs are heavily intertwined with people's social and political identities [25], differ across cultures [26e28], and are rooted in intergroup conflict [29].…”

Section: Strengthsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The psychological study of conspiracy theories: Strengths and limitations

Prooijen¹

2022

Current Opinion in Psychology

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“…Whereas the former refers to unfounded beliefs that involve intentional harm to the self from others ( Freeman and Garety, 2000 ; Bentall et al, 2001 ), the latter is usually defined as an explanation for significant social and political events that involves secret plots by powerful and malevolent others ( Douglas et al, 2017 ). Thus, although both constructs attribute events to the presence of threatening agents, and while there is consistent evidence that the two belief systems are modestly correlated ( Imhoff and Lamberty, 2018 ; Alsuhibani et al, 2022 ), the locus of vulnerability for each appears to be different (i.e., the individual in the case of paranoia and society in general in the case of conspiracy theories; Greenburgh and Raihani, 2022 ; Greenburgh et al, 2022 ). It is estimated that nearly a third (26.7%) of the general population are convinced that there is a conspiracy behind many world events ( Freeman and Bentall, 2017 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Paranoid beliefs and conspiracy mentality are associated with different forms of mistrust: A three-nation study

et al. 2022

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Paranoia and conspiracy are terms typically used interchangeably. However, although the underlying content of these types of beliefs might be similar (e.g., seeing others as powerful and threatening), recent research suggests that these constructs differ in important ways. One important feature shared by both constructs is excessive mistrust but this aspect might play different roles in each belief system. In this study we explored the strength of associations of different trust predictors (i.e., trust in institutions, trust in sources of information, perceptual trust, and interpersonal trust) between conspiracy mentality and paranoid beliefs. We tested this association in a large representative multinational sample (United Kingdom n = 2025; Spain n = 1951; and Ireland n = 1041). Confirmatory factor analysis supported a two-factor model of conspiracy and paranoid beliefs in each nation sample. Path and equality of constraints analysis revealed that paranoia was more strongly associated with perceptual mistrust (bias towards mistrusting unfamiliar faces) whereas conspiracy was more strongly associated with mistrust in political institutions. Although interpersonal mistrust and trust in social sources of information were associated significantly with conspiracy their association with paranoid beliefs was stronger. These findings clarify the role of different trust processes in both belief systems. Limitations of this study are discussed.

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Paranoia and conspiracy thinking

Cited by 22 publications

References 63 publications

Assumed agreement about paranoid conspiracies in social networks protects against distress

Assumed agreement about paranoid conspiracies in social networks protects against distress

The psychological study of conspiracy theories: Strengths and limitations

Paranoid beliefs and conspiracy mentality are associated with different forms of mistrust: A three-nation study

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