Why are there Conspiracy Theories?

Some sociologists and psychologists believe that, as people search for meaning in situations and events they find it hard to accept (such as the death of someone who is much admired or young, or a major world event) they latch onto one or more elements of the event or coverage of it and build, often subconsciously and without realising it, a theory that will explain the event. This theory may sound plausible to others not in possession of the full facts and, if it is denied by the authorities, then that denial may be taken as proof of an official cover-up, thus going to ‘prove’ that there is a conspiracy.

Others believe that the rise of conspiracy theories is a result of the increased and increasing amount of information available to people in the West. This leads to those either seeking to make sense of something or with a psychological tendency towards conspiracy theories to weave this often completely unconnected information into a conspiracy theory. According to this view, the growth of the Internet will fuel the growth of more conspiracy theories about an increasing number of events and social and global developments

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