Origin of conspiracy theories
Why Humans Are Vulnerable to Conspiracy Theories
Humans seem drawn to dark conspiracy theories, often in favor of the simple truth. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, misinformation and conspiracy theorizing have surged. President Trump, for example, praised the antimalarial drug hydroxychloroquine as a "game changer" despite scant empirical evidence of its efficacy and safety for the treatment of SARS-CoV-2 (1).
Others in the administration have promoted the unsubstantiated theory that SARS-CoV-2 originated in a Chinese lab, despite scientific consensus that the virus likely originated in an animal source before zoonotic transfer and that no evidence indicates that the virus emerged through deliberate lab manipulation of a related virus. In early May, conspiracists made the claim, which has gone viral, that Bill Gates, the head of a philanthropic organization, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, have secretly plotted to use the pandemic to profit and seize political power.
Some conspiracy theories, such as the belief that Earth is flat or that the moon landing was faked by the government, are laughable and harmless. Others, such as the notion that vaccines are part of a scheme to cause mass harm, are quite dangerous and may lead to outbreak of disease. The belief among one-third of Americans that climate change is a hoax perpetrated by the scientific community endangers the very planet.
As psychiatrists, we need to be alert to the fact that many of our patients are vulnerable to medical misinformation and conspiracy theories about critically important medical issues, from vaccines, to the etiology of diseases such as SARS-CoV-2, to the availability of medications. For example, one study (2) reported that in a nationally representative sample of the U.S. population, 37% of respondents agreed with the statement, "The Food and Drug Administration is deliberately preventing the public from getting natural cures for cancer and other diseases because of pressure from drug companies." Only 32% disagreed with this statement.
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