People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast

Psychological factors in conspiracy theory beliefs, with Mikey Biddlestone

07.15.2023 - By Zachary ElwoodPlay

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A talk with psychology researcher Mikey Biddlestone, who specializes in conspiracy theory beliefs, about some of the more psychological factors that can make belief in conspiracy theories more likely. We talk about "just world" beliefs (beliefs that the world is largely just and fair) and how those might relate to conspiracy-minded thinking. Other topics discussed: how narcissistic and antisocial personality traits can relate to such beliefs; how we might define what is an unreasonable level of conspiracy-minded thinking; how conspiracy-minded thinking relates to anti-establishment views; the survey result that showed that 12 million Americans believe in "lizard people"; and how conspiracy-minded thinking ties into political polarization. The Khmer Rouge, Mr Clever and Me

In 1993, Chris Moon was captured by the Khmer Rouge. No westerner had ever survived.

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify Support the Show. To get ad-free episodes, and more, get a premium subscription. To learn more about the show, go to behavior-podcast.com. I'm on Twitter at @apokerplayer. See a summary of my work.

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