The DOI matches its Crossref record; 2 of the 7 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Conspiracy theories: Causes and cures
Open accessAbstract
Many millions of people hold conspiracy theories; they believe that powerful people have worked together in order to withhold the truth about some important practice or some terrible event. A recent example is the belief, widespread in some parts of the world, that the attacks of 9/11 were carried out not by Al Qaeda, but by Israel or the United States. Those who subscribe to conspiracy theories may create serious risks, including risks of violence, and the existence of such theories raises significant challenges for policy and law. The first challenge is to understand the mechanisms by which conspiracy theories prosper; the second challenge is to understand how such theories might be undermined. Such theories typically spread as a result of identifiable cognitive blunders, operating in conjunction with informational and reputational influences. A distinctive feature of conspiracy theories is their self-sealing quality. Conspiracy theorists are not likely to be persuaded by an attempt to dispel their theories; they may even characterize that very attempt as further proof of the conspiracy. Because those who hold conspiracy theories typically suffer from a crippled epistemology, in accordance with which it is rational to hold such theories, the best response consists in cognitive infiltration of extremist groups. Various policy dilemmas, such as the question whether it is better for government to rebut conspiracy theories or to ignore them, are explored in this light.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Similarly, different strategies for successful intervention may apply for people who hold strong anti-vaccine conspiracy beliefs than those who do not hold strong beliefs [44].”
From The Effects of Anti-Vaccine Conspiracy Theories on Vaccination Intentions (2014) · cites this paper as [44]
In the citing paper
“Conspiracist ideation is also typically immune to falsification because contradictory evidence (e.g., climate scientists being exonerated of accusations) can be accommodated by broadening the scope of the conspiracy (exonerations are a whitewash), often with considerable creativity [32].”
From The Role of Conspiracist Ideation and Worldviews in Predicting Rejection of Science (2013) · cites this paper as [32]
In the citing paper
“evidence against conspiracy theories is often construed as evidence for them, because the evidence is interpreted as arising from the conspiracy in question”
From The Role of Conspiracist Ideation and Worldviews in Predicting Rejection of Science (2013) · cites this paper as [32]
In the citing paper
“These general and robust findings help identify communicative means by which the motivated reasoning can be attenuated or circumvented [5], [32], [38], [50].”
From The Role of Conspiracist Ideation and Worldviews in Predicting Rejection of Science (2013) · cites this paper as [32]
Citations
Cites
Conspiracy Theories and the Conventional Wisdom
Pigden, C. (2007) · Episteme · doi:10.3366/epi.2007.4.2.219 · Cited by 86
Conspiracy Theories and the Internet: Controlled Demolition and Arrested Development
Clarke, S. (2007) · Episteme · doi:10.3366/epi.2007.4.2.167 · Cited by 67
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 301–400 of 999
Probability and conspiratorial thinking
Kovic, M., & Füchslin, T. (2018) · Applied Cognitive Psychology · doi:10.1002/acp.3408 · Cited by 19
Wood, M. J., & Douglas, K. M. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0016 · Cited by 22
Should Academics Debunk Conspiracy Theories?
Hagen, K. G. (2020) · Social Epistemology · doi:10.1080/02691728.2020.1747118 · Cited by 20
“Examples include: Keeley (1999), Clarke (2002), Levy (2007), Mandik (2007), Sunstein and Vermeule (2009), and Cassam (2016).”
BackgroundWhat to do with conspiracy theories?: Insights from contemporary Turkey
Sağlam, E. (2020) · Anthropology Today · doi:10.1111/1467-8322.12606 · Cited by 21
“They usually disregard the truth for the sake of sustaining a narrative (Sunstein & Vermeule 2009), even in the face of evidential rebuttal.”
BackgroundPhadke, S., Samory, M., & Mitra, T. (2021) · Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction · doi:10.1145/3479855 · Cited by 27
A Quasi-Fideist Approach to QAnon
Smith, N. (2022) · Social Epistemology · doi:10.1080/02691728.2022.2025947 · Cited by 19
“See, Cassam (2019), Clarke (2002) parts of Keely (1999), Napolitano (forthcoming) O’Connor and Weatherall (2019), and Sunstein and Vermeule (2009), among many others for discussion of the epistemic problems with conspiracy theories and conspiracy theorists.”
BackgroundStrömbäck, J., Broda, E., Tsfati, Y., Kossowska, M., & Vliegenthart, R. (2024) · Zeitschrift für Psychologie · doi:10.1027/2151-2604/a000546 · Cited by 21
5G, Religion, and Misconceptions in Communication during Covid-19 in Nigeria
Ndinojuo, B.-C. E. (2020) · Jurnal The Messenger · doi:10.26623/themessenger.v12i2.2282 · Cited by 21
“They have been largely amplified by the rise of the internet, with access largely ubiquitous globally (Oliver & Wood, 2014; Sunstein & Vermeule, 2009), conspiracy theories seem to be thriving as anyone can make up any conspiracy, and with the reach of the internet aided by social media and…”
BackgroundDinkelberg, A., O’Reilly, C., MacCarron, P., Maher, P. J., & Quayle, M. (2021) · Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy · doi:10.1111/asap.12278 · Cited by 20
Stall, L. M., & Petrocelli, J. V. (2022) · Applied Cognitive Psychology · doi:10.1002/acp.3998 · Cited by 22
What Does It Mean for a Conspiracy Theory to Be a ‘Theory’?
Duetz, J. C. M. (2023) · Social Epistemology · doi:10.1080/02691728.2023.2172697 · Cited by 22
Conspiratory fascination versus public interest: the case of ‘climategate’
Lewandowsky, S. (2014) · Environmental Research Letters · doi:10.1088/1748-9326/9/11/111004 · Cited by 19
“One known element of conspiratorial thinking is its ‘self-sealing’ quality (Keeley 1999, Bale 2007, Sunstein and Vermeule 2009), whereby evidence against a conspiratorial belief is reinterpreted as evidence for that belief.”
BackgroundAn agent-based model about the effects of fake news on a norovirus outbreak
Brainard, J. S., Hunter, P. R., & Hall, I. (2020) · Revue d Épidémiologie et de Santé Publique · doi:10.1016/j.respe.2019.12.001 · Cited by 19
“4 (Dis)Trust in The Establishment Distrust in conventional authorities is closely linked to tendency to believe in conspiracy theories (CTs) [24].”
BackgroundEmergência de saúde pública global por pandemia de Covid-19
de Lima, C. R. M., Sánchez‐Tarragó, N., de Moraes, D. R., et al. (2020) · Folha de Rosto · doi:10.46902/2020n2p5-21 · Cited by 19
Jones, C., Galbraith, N., Boyda, D., Martin, D., & Jackson, K. (2023) · Personality and Individual Differences · doi:10.1016/j.paid.2023.112155 · Cited by 17
Conspiracy Thinking About the 15-Minute City: Something from Nothing?
Glover, T. D. (2024) · Leisure Sciences · doi:10.1080/01490400.2024.2387703 · Cited by 20
“While some scholars believe we should view conspiracy theories as products of ignorance or misinformation (Sunstein & Vermeule, 2009), others advocate for neutrality and believe we should refrain from offering normative judgments (Pigden, 1995).”
InfluentialConspiracy Theories in a Networked World
Grewal, D. S. (2016) · Critical Review · doi:10.1080/08913811.2016.1167404 · Cited by 18
Himelboim, I., Borah, P., Lee, D. K. L., Lee, J. J., Su, Y., Vishnevskaya, A., & Xiao, X. (2023) · New Media & Society · doi:10.1177/14614448221142800 · Cited by 18
“Conspiracy theories often overestimate “the competence of official actors” (Sunstein and Vermeule, 2009: 205), such as the well-known urban legend regarding Freemasonry and the Illuminati (e.g. Astapova, 2020; Oberhauser, 2020).”
Mahl, D., Zeng, J., & Schäfer, M. S. (2023) · New Media & Society · doi:10.1177/14614448231160457 · Cited by 27
“While platforms can enable or constrain monetization strategies of users, they can simultaneously benefit from so-called “conspiracy entrepreneurs” (Sunstein and Vermeule, 2009: 212) who can expand the active user base.”
BackgroundThe Rhetorical Aesthetics of More: On Archival Magnitude
Rice, J. E. (2017) · Philosophy and Rhetoric · doi:10.5325/philrhet.50.1.0026 · Cited by 17
Is Conspiracy Theorizing Really Epistemically Problematic?
Hagen, K. G. (2020) · Episteme · doi:10.1017/epi.2020.19 · Cited by 18
“Rather, the conspirators are seen as seeking certain some conspiracy theories have turned out to be true or warranted – Watergate and the Iran-Contra Affair, for example (see Sunstein and Vermeule 2009: 206).”
BackgroundConspiracy and bias: argumentative features and persuasiveness of conspiracy theories
Oswald, S. (2016) · Cited by 16
Rumor Spreading Model with Immunization Strategy and Delay Time on Homogeneous Networks*
Wang, J., Wang, Y., & Li, M. (2017) · Communications in Theoretical Physics · doi:10.1088/0253-6102/68/6/803 · Cited by 17
Beyond Belief: How Social Engagement Motives Influence the Spread of Conspiracy TheoriesPreprint
Ren, Z., Dimant, E., & Schweitzer, M. E. (2021) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.3919364 · Cited by 17
Pennycook, G., Binnendyk, J., & Rand, D. G. (2022) · PsyArXiv (OSF Preprints) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/d5fz2 · Cited by 20
Lepoutre, M. (2022) · Political Studies · doi:10.1177/00323217221129253 · Cited by 16
“Saul, 2021: 147–148; Sunstein and Vermeule, 2009: 222).5 Declaring that ‘the COVID-19 pandemic was not orchestrated by pharmaceutical companies’, as Reuters (2021) recently did, is likely to amplify, by repeating it, the theory that it was so orchestrated.”
BackgroundInfluentialTrustworthy Misinformation Mitigation with Soft Information Nudging
Horne, B. D., Gruppi, M., & Adalı, S. (2019) · IEEE International Conference on Trust, Privacy and Security in Intelligent Systems and Applications (TPS-ISA) · doi:10.1109/tps-isa48467.2019.00039 · Cited by 17
“This behavior is particularly prevalent among consumers with extreme or conspiratorial views [9].”
BackgroundInfluentialBoullier, H., Kotras, B., & Siles, I. (2021) · RESET · doi:10.4000/reset.2698 · Cited by 17
(2015) · Bloomsbury Sigma eBooks · doi:10.5040/9781472944528.0007 · Cited by 16
Mariniello, M. (2022) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780198831471.001.0001 · Cited by 16
Depressive symptoms and conspiracy beliefs
Green, J., Druckman, J. N., Baum, M., Lazer, D. M. J., Ognyanova, K., & Perlis, R. H. (2022) · Applied Cognitive Psychology · doi:10.1002/acp.4011 · Cited by 17
Religion, Conspiracy Thinking, and the Rejection of Democracy: Evidence From the UK
Yendell, A., & Herbert, D. (2022) · Politics and Governance · doi:10.17645/pag.v10i4.5904 · Cited by 17
Fernbach, P. M., & Bogard, J. E. (2023) · Topics in Cognitive Science · doi:10.1111/tops.12662 · Cited by 17
Salazar-Fernández, C., Baeza-Rivera, M. J., Manríquez-Robles, D., Salinas-Oñate, N., & Sallam, M. (2023) · Vaccines · doi:10.3390/vaccines11071150 · Cited by 19
Global Perspectives on Anti-Feminism
Goetz, J., & Mayer, S. (2023) · Edinburgh University Press eBooks · doi:10.1515/9781399505413 · Cited by 18
Dagnall, N., Denovan, A., Drinkwater, K., & Escolà-Gascón, Á. (2023) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1303838 · Cited by 15
“The academic study of conspiracy is important because theories, despite being typically false, possess the potential to influence mainstream moods, opinions, and behaviors (Sunstein and Vermeule, 2009).”
BackgroundMitchell, S. S. D. (2019) · Canadian Journal of Communication · doi:10.22230/cjc.2019v44n2a3329 · Cited by 16
Desinformação sobre o Covid-19 no WhatsApp: a pandemia enquadrada como debate político
Soares, F. B., Recuero, R., Volcan, T. D. O., Fagundes, G., & Sodré, G. (2021) · CIÊNCIA DA INFORMAÇÃO EM REVISTA · doi:10.28998/cirev.2021v8n1e · Cited by 16
Understanding Conspiracy Online: Social Media and the Spread of Suspicious Thinking
Mortimer, K. (2017) · Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management · doi:10.5931/djim.v13i1.6928 · Cited by 16
“They focused on closed clusters of users and observed that clusters grow to reflect the prevailing political opinion; the users thus become more polarized, as hypothesized previously by Sunstein and Vermeule (2009).”
BackgroundInfluentialAtkinson, M., & DeWitt, D. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0008 · Cited by 17
Boissin, E., Costello, T. H., Spinoza-Martín, D., Rand, D. G., & Pennycook, G. (2025) · PNAS Nexus · doi:10.1093/pnasnexus/pgaf325 · Cited by 18
“Beliefs in unfounded conspiracy theories are widely assumed to be essentially impervious to evidence-based correction (1).”
Introducing conspiracy intuitions to better understand conspiracy beliefs.
Roberts, R., & Risen, J. L. (2022) · Current Opinion in Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101395 · Cited by 15
Genealogical undermining for conspiracy theories
Stamatiadis‐Bréhier, A. (2023) · Inquiry · doi:10.1080/0020174x.2023.2187449 · Cited by 16
Conspiracy theories, impostor syndrome, and distrust
Hawley, K. (2019) · Philosophical Studies · doi:10.1007/s11098-018-1222-4 · Cited by 22
Uncertain Knowledge. Studying “Truth” and “Conspiracies” in the Digital Age
Boullier, H., Kotras, B., & Siles, I. (2021) · RESET · doi:10.4000/reset.2750 · Cited by 15
Millar, K. M., & López, J. C. (2021) · Politics · doi:10.1177/02633957211010983 · Cited by 15
“Conspiracy theory, briefly, is ‘an effort to explain some event or practice by reference to the machinations of powerful people, who attempt to conceal their role’ (Sunstein and Vermeule, 2009: 205).”
Shilling, C., & Mellor, P. A. (2014) · Sociology · doi:10.1177/0038038514546661 · Cited by 15
Conspiracy Theory Reconsidered
deHaven‐Smith, L., & Witt, M. T. (2012) · Administration & Society · doi:10.1177/0095399712459727 · Cited by 15
Conspiracism on social media: An agenda melding of group-mediated deceptions
Bantimaroudis, P., Sideri, M., Ballas, D., Panagiotidis, T., & Ziogas, T. (2020) · International Journal of Media and Cultural Politics · doi:10.1386/macp_00020_1 · Cited by 19
Klein, C., Clutton, P., & Dunn, A. G. (2018) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/8vesf · Cited by 14
Social Disruption, Gun Buying, and Anti-System Beliefs
Lacombe, M. J., Simonson, M. D., Green, J., & Druckman, J. N. (2022) · Perspectives on Politics · doi:10.1017/s1537592722003322 · Cited by 16
“These “ other ” beliefs include those related to conspir-acies: beliefs that seek to explain an event by invoking the machinations of powerful people who attempt to conceal their role while pursuing malevolent goals (Bale 2007; Sunstein and Vermeule 2009).”
Онлайн-дейтинг: рынок или базар? Процесс поиска брачной пары на православном сайте знакомств
Galitsina, K., Kalinovskaya, P., & Khvorostianova, O. (2022) · Journal of Economic Sociology · doi:10.17323/1726-3247-2022-2-65-90 · Cited by 16
Exploring the Design of Technology-Mediated Nudges for Online Misinformation
Konstantinou, L., Panos, D., & Karapanos, E. (2024) · International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction · doi:10.1080/10447318.2023.2301265 · Cited by 16
“Such approaches could even lead to the opposite of the desired outcomes, as they could reinforce original conspiratorial beliefs and challenge individuals’ trust towards the interventions (Horne et al., 2019; Nyhan & Reifler, 2010; Vermeule & Sunstein, 2009).”
Lee, B. J. (2016) · Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression · doi:10.1080/19434472.2016.1236143 · Cited by 14
McKenzie-McHarg, A. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0004 · Cited by 18
Deprived, Radical, Alternatively Informed
Ziegele, M., Resing, M., Frehmann, K., Jackob, N., Jakobs, I., Quiring, O., Schemer, C., Schultz, T., & Viehmann, C. (2022) · European Journal of Health Communication · doi:10.47368/ejhc.2022.205 · Cited by 15
“In most Western democracies, however, the official version, which is also mostly supported by scientific evidence, represents the social consensus as well as what a majority considers as the truth (Götz-Votteler & Hespers, 2019; Sunstein & Vermeule, 2009).”
BackgroundThe virus of polarization: online debates about Covid-19 in Germany
Schmid, F., Treib, O., & Eckardt, F. (2022) · Political Research Exchange · doi:10.1080/2474736x.2022.2150087 · Cited by 20
“Conspiracy theories are essentially based on the self-contained quality of their arguments combined with the spread of mistrust in conventional knowl-edge-producing institutions (Hofstadter 1965; Sunstein and Vermeule 2009).”
BackgroundKim, J., & Lee, S.-Y. S. (2023) · American Behavioral Scientist · doi:10.1177/00027642231175637 · Cited by 14
“Conspiracy theories have been considered as the outcomes of crippled epistemologies (Sunstein & Vermeule, 2009).”
Populism and Conspiracy: A Historical Synthesis of American Countersubversive Narratives
Jessen, N. (2019) · American Journal of Economics and Sociology · doi:10.1111/ajes.12275 · Cited by 14
Dealing with Conspiracy Theory Attributions
Martin, B. G. (2020) · Social Epistemology · doi:10.1080/02691728.2020.1748744 · Cited by 14
“Many say or assume this is an important task, because conspiracy theories are wrong and, more importantly, dangerous in some ways (Sunstein and Vermeule 2009).”
BackgroundCoronavirus, ‘Plandemic’ and the seven traits of conspiratorial thinking
Cook, J., Lewandowsky, S., Ecker, U. K. H., & van der Linden, S. (2020) · doi:10.64628/aai.njyveyvvt · Cited by 14
What Makes People Join Conspiracy Communities?: Role of Social Factors in Conspiracy EngagementPreprint
Phadke, S., Samory, M., & Mitra, T. (2020) · arXiv (Cornell University) · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2009.04527 · Cited by 31
A rhetorical perspective on conspiracies
Zagarella, R. M., & Annoni, M. (2019) · Journal of Argumentation in Context · doi:10.1075/jaic.18006.zag · Cited by 12
Kraemer, T., Weiger, W. H., Trang, S. T.-N., & Trenz, M. (2022) · Journal of Product Innovation Management · doi:10.1111/jpim.12646 · Cited by 16
Tam, L., & Kim, S. (2023) · Public Relations Review · doi:10.1016/j.pubrev.2023.102354 · Cited by 19
Miller, M. K., Pierre, J. M., Green, R., et al. (2023) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781009052061 · Cited by 13
On the Democratic Problem of Conspiracy Politics
Moore, A. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0007 · Cited by 14
5-Methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine: An Ego-Dissolving Endogenous Neurochemical Catalyst of Creativity
Germann, C. B. (2019) · Activitas Nervosa Superior · doi:10.1007/s41470-019-00063-y · Cited by 14
Agostinone-Wilson, F. (2019) · BRILL eBooks · doi:10.1163/9789004424531 · Cited by 13
Conspiracy Theories and Religion: Reframing Conspiracy Theories as Bliks
Bezalel, G. Y. (2019) · Episteme · doi:10.1017/epi.2019.46 · Cited by 13
Rethinking conspiracy theories
Shields, M. (2022) · Synthese · doi:10.1007/s11229-022-03811-x · Cited by 13
“More generally, the social and psychological science on conspiracy theories has revealed important characteristics shared among conspiracy theorists (Douglas et al., 2019; Sunstein & Vermeule, 2009).”
BackgroundConspiracism and Delegitimation
Muirhead, R., Rosenblum, N. L., Landauer, M., Macedo, S., Tulis, J. K., & Urbinati, N. (2019) · Contemporary Political Theory · doi:10.1057/s41296-019-00372-6 · Cited by 13
Introduction: Government secrecy
Maret, S. (2011) · Research in social problems and public policy · doi:10.1108/s0196-1152(2011)0000019003 · Cited by 13
Cognitive reflection and the coronavirus conspiracy beliefsPreprint
Sadeghiyeh, H., Ahmadi, I. K., Farhadbeigi, P., & Karimi, N. (2020) · PsyArXiv (OSF Preprints) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/p9wxj · Cited by 13
Théories du complot et COVID-19 : comment naissent les croyances complotistes ?
Bottemanne, H. (2022) · L Encéphale · doi:10.1016/j.encep.2021.12.005 · Cited by 17
“Ces croyances peuvent admettre par exemple que la population est contrôlée par des forces secrètes ou inconnues, ou encore qu’un groupe d’individus agit pour son propre bénéfice de manière illégale, généralement avec l’intention de nuire contre le bien commun, même si ces caractéristiques ne sont pas nécessairement co…”
Мусолфф, А. (2022) · Discourse approaches to politics, society and culture · doi:10.1075/dapsac.98.06mus · Cited by 12
Disinformation and Regime Survival
Sato, Y., Wiebrecht, F., & Lindberg, S. I. (2024) · Political Research Quarterly · doi:10.1177/10659129241252811 · Cited by 24
“Simultaneously, this may enable autocrats to present themselves and their supporters as victims — a narrative that is often used to mobilize supporters (e.g., Ekiert, Perry, and Yan 2020; Pirro and Taggart 2022).”
BackgroundInfluentialCombler le fossé. L’avenir des recherches sur les théories du complot
Bütter, M., Knight, P., & Albert, N. G. (2016) · Diogène · doi:10.3917/dio.249.0021 · Cited by 12
“Conspiracy theory”: The case for being critically receptive
Hayward, T. (2021) · Journal of Social Philosophy · doi:10.1111/josp.12432 · Cited by 12
“(Sunstein and Vermeule 2009, 225) Such suggestions assume not only that the government knows best but that it is legitimate to constrain citizens to believe what government says, while systematically seeking to undermine citizens' coordinated capacities to raise questions aimed at holding it to…”
BackgroundInfluentialPolitical elites and the “War on Truth’’
Bräuninger, T., & Marinov, N. (2022) · Journal of Public Economics · doi:10.1016/j.jpubeco.2021.104585 · Cited by 13
“I Heard That COVID-19 Was...”: Rumors, Pandemic, and Psychological Distance
Kwon, K. H., Pellizzaro, K., Shao, C., & Chadha, M. (2022) · American Behavioral Scientist · doi:10.1177/00027642211066026 · Cited by 13
Conspiratorial thinking in the Latino community on the 2020 election
Cortina, J., & Rottinghaus, B. (2022) · Research & Politics · doi:10.1177/20531680221083535 · Cited by 11
Conspiracy theory and American foreign policy
Aistrope, T. (2016) · Manchester University Press eBooks · doi:10.7765/9781784997373 · Cited by 12
Soentgen, J., & Bilandzić, H. (2014) · GAIA - Ecological Perspectives for Science and Society · doi:10.14512/gaia.23.1.10 · Cited by 12
Revisionist Just War Theory and the Concept of War Crimes
Chehtman, A. (2017) · Leiden Journal of International Law · doi:10.1017/s0922156517000498 · Cited by 12
Media Marginalization of Racial Minorities
Orr, M., & Husting, G. (2018) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780190844073.003.0005 · Cited by 16
Dilemmas of Distrust: Conspiracy Beliefs, Elite Rhetoric, and Motivated Reasoning
Radnitz, S. (2021) · Political Research Quarterly · doi:10.1177/10659129211034558 · Cited by 12
“This cell corresponds to most research on conspiracy belief in advanced democracies, which views conspiracy belief as normatively problematic (e.g., Sunstein and Vermeule 2009) or as an aberration from an accepted standard of rationality (Douglas, Sutton, and Cichocka 2017; Swami and Coles 2010;…”
BackgroundConceptual Approaches to the Study of Spatial Inequality: the Case of Russian Education
Adamovich, K. (2022) · Journal of Economic Sociology · doi:10.17323/1726-3247-2022-2-147-161 · Cited by 10
Marques, F. P. J., Ferracioli, P., Comel, N., & Kniess, A. B. (2023) · Journalism · doi:10.1177/14648849231165579 · Cited by 11
“24 Moreover, while part of the literature advocates the relevance of of fi cial sources to combat conspiracy theories (Sunstein and Vermeule, 2009), one of the agents identi fi ed by Comprova as a central disseminator of mis-and disinformation is the Brazilian Ministry of Health itself — which…”
BackgroundA proliferação das fake news nas eleições brasileiras de 2018
Jardelino, F., Cavalcanti, D. B., & Toniolo, B. P. (2020) · Comunicação pública · doi:10.4000/cp.7438 · Cited by 17
Oliver, M. A. (2020) · Journal of Business Ethics · doi:10.1007/s10551-020-04612-3 · Cited by 16
“” Unfortunately, how to fight conspiracy theories remains a difficult question as research outside business ethics shows how difficult it is to debunk these theories and how attempts to debunk a theory often become, in the eyes of the conspiracists, evidence that the conspiracy is real (Sunstein and Vermeule 2009).”
BackgroundInfluentialJúnior, J. D. S. (2021) · Humanities and Social Sciences Communications · doi:10.1057/s41599-021-00883-x · Cited by 11
Mashuri, A., & Osteen, C. M. (2023) · Psychology and Developing Societies · doi:10.1177/09713336231152312 · Cited by 11
“Belief in conspiracies is a worldwide social phenomenon (van Prooijen & Douglas, 2018), and they are surprisingly endorsed by a significant number of citizens in both developed countries and developing countries (Sunstein & Vermeule, 2009).”
BackgroundConspiracy Theories and Democratic Legitimacy
Mittendorf, W. (2023) · Social Epistemology · doi:10.1080/02691728.2023.2172700 · Cited by 11
“Conspiracy theories are frequently described as a threat to democracy and conspiracy theorists portrayed as epistemically or morally unreasonable (Lynch 2021; Muirhead and Rosenblum 2020; Cíbik and Hardoš 2020; Cassam 2019; Stanley 2018; Sunstein and Vermeule 2009; Hofstadter 2008; Popper 1963).”
BackgroundConspiracy Theory and (or as) Folk Psychology
Keeley, B. L. (2023) · Social Epistemology · doi:10.1080/02691728.2023.2191290 · Cited by 11
“An evocative turn of phrase introduced into conspiracy theory theory by Sunstein and Vermeule (2009), but originally coined (to my knowledge) in Hardin (2002).”
BackgroundLikely and Unlikely Stories: Conspiracy Theories in an Age of Propaganda
Marmura, S. M. E. (2014) · International journal of communication · Cited by 11
Validating Conspiracy Beliefs and Effectively Communicating Scientific Consensus
Bolsen, T., & Druckman, J. N. (2018) · Weather Climate and Society · doi:10.1175/wcas-d-17-0096.1 · Cited by 11
“This is often referred to as (dis)confirmation bias (Taber and Lodge 2006; Leeper and Slothuus 2014): confirming one’s existing beliefs, or protecting one’s existing worldview, is more important than ‘‘getting it right’’ (i.e., inconsistent information is disconfirmed or rejected).”
BackgroundWang, J., Min, L., Wang, Y., Zhou, Z.-C., & Li-Qiong, Z. (2019) · International Journal of Modern Physics C · doi:10.1142/s012918311950075x · Cited by 11
Burri, M. (2022) · Economic analysis of law in European legal scholarship · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-95876-3_2 · Cited by 11
Meuer, M., Oeberst, A., & Imhoff, R. (2022) · European Journal of Social Psychology · doi:10.1002/ejsp.2903 · Cited by 14
Metadata
- Authors
- Sunstein, C. R., & Vermeule, A.
- Affiliations
- Harvard University (US)
- Venue
- Journal of Political Philosophy
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2009-04-13
- Volume
- 17
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 202-227
- ISSN
- 0963-8016 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-9760
- OpenAlex
- W2009369609
- Cited by
- 1,050
- References
- 7
- Citations by year
- 2026: 92 · 2025: 90 · 2024: 98 · 2023: 109 · 2022: 161 · 2021: 107 · 2020: 102 · 2019: 78 · 2018: 63 · 2017: 39 · 2016: 33 · 2015: 31 · 2014: 23 · 2013: 12 · 2012: 10
- FWCI
- 2.31
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- nrs.harvard.edu
- Locations
- Journal of Political Philosophy (publishedVersion)
- Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Misinformation and Its Impacts
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Epistemology, Ethics, and Metaphysics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Political Violence
- Keywords
- conspiracy theories, 9/11 conspiracy theories, cognitive errors, epistemology, misinformation, extremist groups, countering disinformation, public policy
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
