Conspiracy narratives have been circulating since humans started theorising to interpret the world around us. There is historical evidence of conspiracy theories during disease epidemics and in times of societal crisis, dating back to the Roman era of 64 CE.
It can be easy to dismiss certain conspiracy theories as paranoid nonsense; however, belief in conspiracy narratives is very widespread. For example, an international survey that took place in 2020 and included 28 countries revealed that one third of people believed a “foreign power/other force” caused the COVID-19 pandemic.
Conspiracy theories offer an alternative ideological framework to explain the reason for an unforeseen threat or crisis. We intuitively process situations that threaten our sense of control and seek an explanation to resolve the uncertainty. Believing that a stressful life event has been orchestrated by a group of malevolent actors may provide some degree of reassurance and promote a feeling that we have regained a level of control.
Where do they originate?
Conspiracy theories often originate during a crisis, after a natural disaster or in times
