Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: Quassim Cassam's Conspiracy Theories is part of a growing body of literature concerned with the epistemology and social impact of conspiracy thinking.While much previous scholarship has focused on the cognitive errors or historical patterns of conspiracy theorizing, Cassam takes a different approach.He argues that Conspiracy Theories (in his book, with capital C and T) are not merely intellectual failings but rather ideological tools designed to serve political ends.His central claim is that these theories function as political propaganda rather than as misguided attempts to uncover hidden truths.In doing so, Cassam shifts the debate away from discussions of rationality and irrationality and toward an analysis of how conspiracy theories operate within broader political and ideological struggles.Cassam begins by distinguishing Conspiracy Theories from ordinary beliefs in actual conspiracies, whereby a small group of conspirators work together in secret to do something illegal or harmful.While real conspiracies undoubtedly exist -Watergate, Iran-Contra, and the Gunpowder Plot being notable examples -Conspiracy Theories, in his sense, are characterized by their speculative, contrarian, and self-sealing nature (p.4).They are structured to resist falsification and to deepen suspicion rather than resolve uncertainty.The book goes on to challenge the dominant psychological explanations of why people believe in Conspiracy Theories (p. 6).While studies in cognitive science suggest that belief in these theories stems from biases such as confirmation bias, intentionality bias, and proportionality bias, Cassam argues that these explanations are incomplete.He contends that conspiracy thinking is best understood as an ideological stance rather than as a psychological disposition.
Source: Filozofia
Author: Dimitar Ganev
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4409481357