It is well known that there are a lot of well described and well understood psychological mechanisms in play when we consume information and try to understand the world based on them.
Researchers believe that some of the psychological mechanisms are in fact connected to the evolutionary process and that they are perfectly natural and reasonable responses, even though the result is that we end up believing in things that aren’t actually real. Others are of our interaction with others in a modern society, and the need to quickly understand the situation we are in, the context, the people we are dealing with, and what their agenda might be. Here are some examples.
Pattern perception – a humanly tendency to make sense of the world. We like to look for existing patterns between events and people and how they are connected. If this is how it used to be, then there is a good chance that it is still the case. The more we try to find the patterns behind events and agendas, the less we tend to look at other possible reasons for why a particular event happens like it does.
Errors that can follow from this way of thinking can occur if you are looking for patterns that are false and then contribute any event to your own perceived agenda.
Agency detection – There is a tendency to recognize motives and intentions behind other people’s actions. This is a perfectly normal reaction, and most of the time it will help to explain other people’s actions. The problem arises when you attach motives and intentions to people that they do not have. This kind of thinking is often leading you to feel empathy or hatred for certain people, and that may cloud your judgement of their actual motives. Agency detection can increase your sensitivity to form any kind of beliefs about others, be it political or psychological.
Threat management – They are out to kill you! Like we saw with structural conspiracism in Chapter 1 it can seem more obvious to believe in a conspiracy theory if the stakes are higher. So if your health, freedom, or even your life seems to be threatened you will be more likely to believe in a conspiracy theory. Studies propose that conspiracy theories can be connected to a threat-management system. It makes us recognize threats and how to cope with these through functional responses.
Alliance detection – We all need to feel that we belong to a group. It is a normal human reaction to seek like minded people with the same attitudes as you. Groups are effective in collaborating towards common goals, and they are also effective in reaching a consensus about how to view the world. We are good at recognising groups we agree with as well as groups that we disagree with. In the case of conspiracy theories though, groups can be quick to create a consensus about the world that might not be factual. Eventually dissenting voices may find it easier to leave the group entirely than trying to change the consensus attitude.
Want to find out more? Read the Critical Balance e-book for youth workers on critical thinking and conspiracy theories!
