Routledge Handbook Of Conspiracy Theories

Description

Taking a global and interdisciplinary approach, the Routledge Handbook of Conspiracy Theories provides a comprehensive overview of conspiracy theories as an important social, cultural and political phenomenon in contemporary life. This handbook provides the most complete analysis of the phenomenon to date. It analyses conspiracy theories from a variety of perspectives, using both qualitative and quantitative methods. It maps out the key debates, and includes chapters on the historical origins of conspiracy theories, as well as their political significance in a broad range of countries and regions. Other chapters consider the psychology and the sociology of conspiracy beliefs, in addition to their changing cultural forms, functions and modes of transmission. This handbook examines where conspiracy theories come from, who believes in them and what their consequences are. This book presents an important resource for students and scholars from a range of disciplines interested in the societal and political impact of conspiracy theories, including Area Studies, Anthropology, History, Media and Cultural Studies, Political Science, Psychology and Sociology. Table of Contents......Page 8 List of Contributors......Page 13 Acknowledgements......Page 21 General Introduction......Page 22 References......Page 28 Definitions and approaches......Page 30 Introduction......Page 32 References......Page 35 Introduction......Page 37 Conceptual history as a methodology......Page 38 The merger of conspiracy and theory......Page 42 References......Page 47 Introduction......Page 49 Historical studies......Page 50 Cultural studies......Page 52 Literary studies......Page 56 Conclusion......Page 59 References......Page 60 Introduction......Page 64 Main characteristics of conspiracist semiosis......Page 66 Code-text as a unifying mechanism of conspiracist semiosis......Page 68 Conspiracy theories as representations......Page 69 Conspiracy theories as a mechanism of identity creation......Page 71 Autocommunication and self-description of conspiracy theorists......Page 72 Conclusion and future directions......Page 73 References......Page 74 The question of the definition......Page 77 The epistemic status of conspiracy theories......Page 79 The ethics of conspiracy theories......Page 81 The fight against conspiracy theories......Page 83 Conclusion......Page 84 Notes......Page 85 References......Page 86 Introduction: Beyond realist and symbolist approaches......Page 88 The pathologisation of conspiracy theory......Page 89 Psychoanalytic accounts of paranoia in social theory......Page 91 Symptomatic readings......Page 93 Lacanian accounts of conspiracist desire......Page 94 Conspiracy theory and fantasy......Page 96 Lacan and the normalisation of paranoia......Page 97 References......Page 99 Introduction: Disciplinary foundations......Page 102 The problem of definitions......Page 103 Witchcraft as ordinary and extraordinary......Page 104 Fear of satanic cults in the U.K. and elsewhere......Page 105 The ambivalence of close relations......Page 106 From secret to public accusations......Page 107 Occult cosmologies and globalisation......Page 108 Female and male idioms and explanations......Page 109 The U.S.A. and the transfer of conspiracy theories......Page 110 Conspiracy theory and social theory......Page 111 Clarity, opacity, belief and doubt......Page 112 References......Page 113 Introduction......Page 115 Social reality as a conspiracy......Page 116 Sociological definitions of conspiracy theory......Page 117 Methodological questions......Page 119 Modernity as a conspiracy: Theorising conspiracy theories......Page 121 Empirical research......Page 123 Conclusion: Future research in the sociology of conspiracy theory......Page 125 References......Page 126 Introduction......Page 129 Political science and its context: A brief introduction......Page 130 Topics and methodologies: How political scientists deal with conspiracy theories......Page 131 Main findings and debates: What political scientists know and dispute about conspiracy theories......Page 132 Definitions and labels: Conspiracy theories according to political scientists......Page 134 Further perspectives: What political scientists could/should do about conspiracy theories......Page 137 References......Page 138 Introduction......Page 142 History of research on conspiracy theories in social psychology......Page 143 Theoretical modelling in social psychology: An example......Page 145 Interpreting findings......Page 146 Correlations......Page 147 Study designs......Page 149 The contributions of social psychology to the understanding of conspiracy theories......Page 150 Limitations......Page 152 References......Page 153 The use of social network analysis......Page 156 Networks and dissemination through humans, bots and cyborgs......Page 158 Virtual communities and conspiracy theories......Page 159 Social big data and conspiracy theories......Page 161 Case study: Retweet networks in the ‘Help Catalonia’ campaign......Page 163 Notes......Page 166 References......Page 167 Psychological factors......Page 170 Introduction......Page 172 References......Page 175 Introduction......Page 176 The role of personality traits......Page 177 The role of cognitive styles......Page 179 The role of worldviews......Page 182 A dynamic system of individual differences......Page 183 References......Page 184 Introduction......Page 189 Cognitive roots: Intuitive versus analytic thinking......Page 190 Cognitive roots: Threat and uncertainty......Page 193 Complex conspiracy theories......Page 194 What about real conspiracies?......Page 197 References......Page 198 Motivations......Page 202 Feeling knowledgeable: Epistemic motives......Page 203 Feeling safe and secure: Existential motives......Page 204 Feeling good about the self and groups: Social motives......Page 205 Emotions......Page 206 Do conspiracy theories ‘work’?......Page 207 Future research......Page 208 Conclusion......Page 209 References......Page 210 Some preliminary notes on questions of definitions......Page 213 Inferring threat from power......Page 216 Feelings of powerlessness and conspiracy beliefs......Page 218 Powerless and betrayed – what next?......Page 219 Levelling of power differences as a functional aspect of conspiracy beliefs?......Page 220 The power paradox: integrating conspiracy research with power research......Page 222 Conclusion......Page 223 References......Page 224 Introduction......Page 227 The transmission process......Page 228 Situational factors affecting transmission......Page 230 The reciprocal relations between content and transmission......Page 232 Discussion and outlook......Page 234 References......Page 236 Conspiracy stereotypes and images of conspiring outgroups......Page 240 What motivates conspiring images of outgroups?......Page 242 What are the intergroup consequences of beliefs in intergroup conspiracy theories?......Page 246 Conclusion......Page 247 References......Page 248 Belief in conspiracy theories......Page 252 Negative consequences......Page 253 Polarisation and attitude change......Page 254 Political consequences......Page 255 Science denialism......Page 257 Daily life context......Page 258 Conclusion......Page 259 References......Page 260 To debunk or not to debunk? That is the question......Page 263 The difficulties of debunking conspiracy theories......Page 266 The typology of counterstrategies......Page 267 Immunisation......Page 268 Pre-emptive strike......Page 269 Healing......Page 270 Striking back......Page 271 Conclusion......Page 272 References......Page 273 Society and politics......Page 278 Introduction......Page 280 References......Page 283 Definitions......Page 284 Do we measure at all and what do we measure?......Page 286 Demographics......Page 287 Conspiracy theories across contexts......Page 288 Conspiracy theories and ideology......Page 293 Conclusion......Page 294 References......Page 295 Introduction......Page 299 Academic work on conspiracy theorists......Page 300 Conspiracy theory entrepreneurs......Page 302 Conspiracy theory movements......Page 304 Conspiracy theory individuals......Page 307 Conclusion......Page 309 References......Page 310 The influence of gender and sexuality on conspiracy belief......Page 313 The importance of gender and (deviant) sexuality in conspiracy theory narratives......Page 318 Note......Page 323 References......Page 324 Introduction......Page 325 Political trust and knowledge......Page 326 Political ideology......Page 327 Party affiliation......Page 330 Political participation......Page 331 Supporting data......Page 332 Conclusion......Page 334 References......Page 335 Introduction......Page 338 Political functions of conspiracy theories......Page 339 Conspiracy theories as a tool of propaganda......Page 340 The post-Soviet space and Russia as conspiracy state......Page 342 Populism and conspiracy theories: Populism in power and populism as manual for authoritarianism......Page 344 The Middle East and Islamic world......Page 346 References......Page 348 Defining populism......Page 351 Populism and conspiracy theory......Page 353 Anti-immigrant conspiracy theories in the Nordic countries......Page 355 Donald Trump’s conspiracist populism......Page 358 References......Page 361 Introduction......Page 365 On conspiracy theories and radicalisation......Page 366 How radicalisation works......Page 367 Conspiracy theories and extremist narratives......Page 368 Psychological factors......Page 371 Radicalisation and conspiracy theory as social context......Page 372 Conclusion......Page 374 References......Page 376 Premodern conspiracy narratives......Page 378 Modern antisemitism and conspiracism......Page 380 World War, revolution and radicalisation......Page 383 Nazi antisemitism......Page 384 Post-war developments......Page 385 Stalinism and anti-Zionism......Page 386 Antisemitism in the Middle East......Page 387 Antisemitism as a tradition of conspiracism......Page 388 References......Page 389 Introduction......Page 392 Conspiracy theory as religion – or its substitute......Page 393 Conspiracy theories about religion(s)......Page 395 Conspiracy theory in religion: ‘W.E.I.R.D.’ people......Page 396 Conspiracy theories in religion: State, Church and Pussy Riot......Page 397 Conspiracy theory in religion: Islam and polio vaccine theories in Nigeria......Page 398 Conspiracy theory in religion: New Age and ‘conspirituality’......Page 400 Conclusion......Page 401 References......Page 402 Media and transmission......Page 406 Introduction......Page 408 References......Page 411 Introduction......Page 412 Manifestations of conspiracy theories in verbal communication: Terms and definitions......Page 413 Transmission of rumours: Observations and experiments before the Second World War......Page 414 Rumours in the Second World War: The real-life experiment in the circulation of misinformation......Page 415 Post-war research on rumour: Folklorists take over......Page 416 Conclusion: Word-of-mouth research in the age of the Internet......Page 419 References......Page 420 Introduction......Page 422 The history of media(tion)......Page 423 Pre-print culture......Page 425 Print culture......Page 429 Conclusion......Page 432 References......Page 433 Introduction......Page 436 Conspiracy and suspicion in the nineteenth century......Page 437 The spectre of invasion......Page 438 Networks (of detection)......Page 442 Conclusion......Page 445 References......Page 446 Introduction......Page 448 Plotting conspiracy......Page 449 A new paranoid style......Page 450 Periodising post-war paranoia......Page 455 References......Page 459 Introduction......Page 462 A seminal precursor of the conspiracist style......Page 463 Conspiracy theories and visual narrativity......Page 464 Visual metaphors......Page 465 Examples of mixed mediality......Page 468 Performativity: Conspiracy as spectacle......Page 470 Monophasic representation......Page 471 Conspiracy theories in modern art......Page 472 Conclusion......Page 474 References......Page 475 Introduction......Page 478 The conspiracy (theory) film......Page 479 Conspiracy (theory) in television shows......Page 484 References......Page 488 Introduction......Page 490 Encoding/decoding mass media......Page 491 ‘Produsers’/‘prosumers’ on the Internet......Page 493 Audio-visual readings on YouTube......Page 495 Reading Illuminati in the culture industry......Page 496 Decoding Illuminati symbolism......Page 497 Audiences and conspiracy theories......Page 499 References......Page 501 Introduction: The mediatisation of conspiracy theories......Page 504 The Web 2.0: Increasing participation or dis-/misinformation?......Page 505 The propagation of conspiracy theories online......Page 506 The spread of anti-vax conspiracy theories: A case study......Page 508 Conclusion......Page 513 References......Page 514 Dwelling on the medium: Online network topologies......Page 518 Studying the online lifecycle of conspiracy theories......Page 521 Dynamics of diffusion......Page 523 Positions and roles in the network......Page 525 Whole-network structure and dynamics......Page 527 References......Page 529 Introduction......Page 533 The advent of ‘fake news’ as a communicative praxis......Page 534 The mechanism of interaction between ‘fake news’ and conspiracy theories......Page 535 Synergy and distribution......Page 538 Complementation and reinforcement......Page 540 Political but not strictly partisan?......Page 541 Conclusion......Page 542 References......Page 543 Histories and regions......Page 546 Introduction......Page 548 References......Page 551 Definition and method......Page 552 The death of Germanicus......Page 554 The Great Fire of 64 c.e.......Page 556 References......Page 561 Introduction......Page 563 Conspiracy theories during the Middle Ages......Page 564 The notion of conspiracy in the early modern age......Page 565 The historical conditions for the emergence of real conspiracy theories......Page 566 The impact of religion on the shaping of conspiracy theories......Page 568 The decline of conspiracy theories in the European state system......Page 569 Conspiracy theories during the Enlightenment......Page 570 Conspiracy theories as a tenet of revolutionary and counter-revolutionary thought......Page 571 References......Page 572 Introduction......Page 576 Anti-revolutionary conspiracist narratives: Barruel, Robison and Starck......Page 577 A common ground: Counter-Enlightenment......Page 579 The religious and political dimension of anti-Masonry......Page 580 The real Illuminati......Page 581 Secret societies and the French Revolution......Page 582 The transfer of the Illuminati conspiracy theory to New England......Page 583 Conclusion: Freemasonry and antisemitic conspiracy theories......Page 584 References......Page 586 The obsession with spies and traitors in the First World War......Page 590 Conspiracy theories as an explanation for catastrophe......Page 591 Conspiracy theories within Nazism......Page 592 Conspiracy theories under the Soviet regime......Page 593 The intensification of conspiracy theories during wartime......Page 594 A weapon in the ideological conflict of the Cold War......Page 595 The rise of anti-elite conspiracy theories in Western Europe......Page 596 The renewal of world conspiracy theories in the pre-9/11 era......Page 597 Conclusion......Page 598 References......Page 599 Introduction......Page 603 New World Order conspiracy: An overview......Page 604 Post-Soviet Russian conspiracy culture: Enemies within and outside......Page 606 The ‘Mondialists’ come to Russia......Page 607 In search of Khazaria: The antisemitic undertones of the concept......Page 609 Sovereignty in question......Page 611 References......Page 614 Introduction......Page 617 Western conspiratorial discourses in/about the Balkans......Page 618 Worldwide travelling conspiratorial discourses in the Balkans: Antisemitism and anti-imperialism......Page 620 Conspiracy theories about dissolution of Yugoslavia, wars and social change......Page 627 References......Page 628 The demise of an empire: The Ottoman legacy......Page 631 The Sèvres Treaty vs. the Lausanne Treaty......Page 633 Kemalism and Neo-Kemalism from the 1930s to 2000s......Page 634 Islamist conspiratorial universe......Page 636 Deep state: Reality, discourse and conspiracy theory......Page 638 Conspiracy theories during A.K.P. rule......Page 639 References......Page 642 Introduction......Page 645 Analytical points of departure......Page 646 State, society and conspiracy theories......Page 647 External influences and conspiracy theories......Page 649 The state and political leadership as conspiracy theorists......Page 651 Transmission, evolution and impacts......Page 653 References......Page 655 Introduction......Page 659 Anti-West conspiracy theories......Page 660 Conspiratorial Jews in a region without Jews......Page 663 Conspiracy theories and inter-group conflict......Page 664 References......Page 666 Introduction......Page 669 From the colonial period to the Cold War: Conspiracy theories as influential orthodox knowledge......Page 670 From the 1960s to 9/11: Conspiracy theories as stigmatised heterodox knowledge......Page 674 Conclusion: Conspiracy theories as heterodox and orthodox knowledge in the fragmented public sphere the early 21st century......Page 677 References......Page 678 Introduction......Page 681 Political demonology......Page 683 Populism and conspiracy theories in Hugo Chávez’s discourse......Page 685 Conclusion......Page 691 References......Page 692 Index......Page 695