Does It Take One to Know One? New Research Reveals Conspiring Conspiracy Theorists

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110504080730.htm

Conspiracy theories -- such as those surrounding the death of Princess Diana -- are more likely to be believed by people who are willing themselves to conspire, new research at the University of Kent has shown.

In a paper to be published in the British Journal of Social Psychology, Dr Karen Douglas and Dr Robbie Sutton, two researchers from the University's School of Psychology, found that - in keeping with the psychological process called projection -- an individual's perception that "I would do it" informs his or her perception that "they did it."

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Further, the researchers found that participants who were highly Machiavellian -- defined as willing to exploit others for personal gain -- were more likely to indicate willingness to conspire, and as a result, were more likely to believe in conspiracy theories.

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We're not saying however that all conspiracy theorists are immoral or that they have arrived at their beliefs through projection. It's important to note that other factors may lead people to believe in conspiracy theories. Also, our research says nothing about the truth or objective plausibility of such theories. However what we have shown is that one reason some people endorse conspiracy theories is because is they project their own moral tendencies onto the supposed conspirators', she said.
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