“We sometimes just want to believe” - the theory behind conspiracy theories

There seems to be a conspiracy theory for everything these days, especially with the way social media has grown. Why can it be so easy for people to believe them, even when there are facts that disprove the theories? Derek Arnold is an assistant instructor at Villanova University who teaches a course on conspiracy theories, taking an academic and critical approach to how they catch on. We talk with him to learn more about the appeal behind these ideas, how people get so deep that these theories become part of their identities, and how to try to counter them if you know someone who supports a conspiracy theory.

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