by Richard C. Raynard, Ph.D.
Licensed Clinical Psychologist
Why buy into conspiracy theories? It's the emotion of insecurity, the feeling of being ineffective and unable to take care of yourself. Powerlessness is a powerful emotion.
| Insecure |
The emotion of insecurity can team up with the frustration of anger and create cynicism. "Nothing will work; the forces are against you". In this way the believer tries to understand why the insecurity feelings exist.
Why do insecurity feelings arise in the first place? Young and Klasko (1993) show it can be learned at home at an early age when a child is made to feel helpless or a failure. Hoffer (1953) felt that those raised in poverty and ignorance make for an especially vulnerable, insecure young adult whose life feels ineffective, or "spoiled".
Sadly. the internet supports the natural tendency to look for evidence to support what you believe. And efforts to debunk the conspiracy belief are taken to be part of the conspiracy. See the "backfire effect" of Nyham & Reiffer (2006).
A circular path develops. The believer in conspiracy theories comes to feel less in control, and this insecurity helps keep the belief alive and well. A dead end, it there ever was one.
The corporate plutocracy is a well-developed conspiracy right out in the open. Wouldn't that satisfy most conspiracy theorists?
About Dr. Raynard
Dr. Richard Raynard is a licensed clinical psychologist with 35 years experience resolving a broad range of emotional problems. As a cognitive-behavioral therapist who has specialized in anxiety and phobic disorders since 1980, he has spent the last 35 years fulfilling his life-long desire to explore and define the true purpose of emotions and how people can easily use emotions to create meaning and satisfaction in their lives. Dr. Raynard's series of books on emotions can be found on Amazon.com. His other books include Don't Panic, and Anxiety & Panic Medications.
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