“But It’s the Only Possible Explanation” 0
Writing at Psychology Today Blogs, Sara Gorman and Jack Gorman look at a recent study regarding persons who tend to believe in conspiracy theories. It suggests that personality traits, rather than demographic factors, may play a larger role in susceptibility to conspiracy theories than previously thought. Here’s a bit:
In fact, this was not a major motivator in this analysis. Instead, wanting their group to feel superior to other groups was a much more significant motivation to believe in conspiracy theories. In terms of personality traits, the researchers found a strong association between believing in conspiracy theories and the following traits: insecurity, paranoia, emotional volatility, and impulsivity. People with high levels of belief in conspiracy theories were also more likely to be manipulative, egocentric, and eccentric.
Given the current state of dis coarse discourse, I think their piece is well worth a read.
