9 Reasons People Believe In Conspiracy Theories
Wake up, sheeple.
A poll in 2013 revealed that 12 million Americans know that the world is run by a race of reptilian overlords. As many as 15% of Americans (just over 47 million) believe that the 9/11 attacks were an inside job and 20% (63 million) don't believe that we went to the moon.
Conspiracies theories are so prevalent these days, that there's a good chance that you, yourself, believe in at least one of them, whether you know it or not. A conspiracy theory is defined as “(1) a group (2) acting in secret (3) to alter institutions, usurp power, hide truth, or gain utility (4) at the expense of the common good.” Whether or not that's referring to lizard people in human suits, or a nagging suspicion that politicians are not telling us the whole truth, it doesn't take much for a conspiracy theory to blossom.
The theories are only as strong and as bonkers as their supporters, however, so what makes people believe in these things in the first place?
The psychology of conspiracy is complicated and nuanced. There are a lot of quirks in human nature that would push us towards believing, but only some of us end up right over the edge - but why?