Past research shows people with lower levels of education are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories. But with narcissists, education is no longer protective. Highly educated people who had narcissistic traits were more accepting of conspiracy theories and misinformation.
https://theconversation.com/why-do-educated-people-fall-for-conspiracy-theories-it-could-be-narcissism-270169
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That certainly tracks with my own anecdotal experience.
Why do educated people fall for conspiracy theories? It could be narcissism
If there are two things the internet loves talking about, it’s conspiracy theories, and who may or may not be a narcissist.
Misinformation and conspiratorial thinking are long-running concerns, while narcissism has become TikTok’s favourite armchair diagnosis.
Research shows the two concepts, though seemingly separate, may actually be closely linked.
The findings show higher scores on measures of narcissism were linked to belief in conspiracy theories and misinformation.
Importantly, this result held true regardless of how educated the participants were.
Scholarly evidence **shows people with lower levels of education are more likely to believe in conspiracy theories**. But that’s only part of the story.
We also know that historically, conspiracy theories have done well in times of uncertainty, including during war, economic downturn and widespread hardship (such as the COVID pandemic).
The participants had varying levels of education, ranging from high school or less through to having a masters or doctorate. They also had a variety of political beliefs.
**People who scored higher in narcissistic traits were more accepting of conspiracy theories and misinformation.**
Importantly, this was true regardless of how educated the person was.
**The results showed these traits might offset the differences linked to education. When these traits were above average, highly educated people were just as likely to endorse these beliefs as those without any formal education.**
For those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886925005306
Interesting the things that come out like this considering they used to say people who believed in elite child sex trafficking rings were loony conspiracy theorists. They don’t say that anymore for some reason but I forgot why
There are doctors who are antivax, airline employees who are flat earth, and bankers who are into crypto
Trumps own offerings of conspiracy theories, seem to be directly associated with his own involvement in said theories.
Some excerpts –
* In Study One, narcissistic grandiosity and the need for uniqueness offset negative effects of education on conspiracy mentality. Similarly, in Study Two, narcissism, and less consistently need for cognitive closure, offset the negative effects of education on generic conspiracy beliefs and susceptibility to misinformation.
* These findings suggest that education and reasoning may be made redundant by psychological needs for certainty, distinctiveness, and superiority – a process cautiously termed ‘epistemic-social motivated reasoning’. This framework describes how education-related abilities can be redirected towards underlying psychological and social needs rather than accuracy.
* at one standard deviation above the mean in grandiose narcissism, differences between education levels became non-significant (ps > 0.54), suggesting modest increases in grandiose narcissism reduce the protective effect of education to non-significant levels
I see that the door to understanding my Ex has been opened.
Smart, funny but narcissistic. Post divorce life is very lonely for him. It’s sad.
I had a Housemate who often passively accused me of spouting conspiracy theories. One of the last times we connected, he acknowledged that pretty much everything that I was saying all those years ago has come to pass; so there’s that…
This and the rate of narcissism among politicians are two things probably worth considering together.
It makes sense that the arrogance commonly shown by people who have narcissistic traits could lead to more frequent confirmation bias. Especially if something challenges their inflated sense of self.
con·spir·a·cy the·o·ry
/kənˈspirəsē ˌTHēərē,kənˈspirəsē ˌTHirē/
*noun*
1. a belief that some influential or controlling organization or group is [secretly](https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=b70acbf54ac5c526&sxsrf=ANbL-n6o6TUgcJlrJy_j6JvZ2Zwg-TSBpA:1768858750016&q=secretly&si=AL3DRZGCrnAF0R35UNPJcgaBbCFaUMiRMhRcRtgfrlFBmwmqXoOuef8z-vMqXLE9aFcCHkJGWz1nxwmXe6T8gAl-NFDex_beoFM70hCjM_TS-q_kU_4IkDg%3D&expnd=1&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiIsc6ryJiSAxUCM9AFHS_vFSwQyecJegQIJBAQ) responsible for a notable event or phenomenon.
The title of the article feels vague. I sense click bate. But i shall not click, I shall not learn. Back to my tin foil hat.
A lot of cults recruit doctors and scientists who just want to be important within the cult
Conspiracies happen. Do we need to study why people believe the sun will rise tomorrow?
I’m sure they’re talking about “crazy” conspiracy theories, like ‘the people who push the idea that conspiracies don’t happen are actually trying to deflect attention away from actual conspiracies’, though, right?
yes, of course, conspiracy theories would be appealing to people who want to be important or have information that other people don’t.
I wish I could recall the video but a man shared that the main things that make people prone to conspiracy are ignorance, anxiety and ego, so that tracks.