New research suggests narcissism is one of the best psychological predictors of conspiracy beliefs. This may be due to several reasons. These include narcissists' gullibility, paranoia, and their need for dominance and feeling special.
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- Conspiracy theories are explanations that attribute the true cause of a major event to secret and malevolent plots by powerful agents or groups.
- Research shows that compared to the average person, narcissists are more likely to find conspiracy theories appealing.
- Paranoia, gullibility, need for dominance and uniqueness, and collective narcissism may explain why narcissists are drawn to conspiracy theories
Though many people believe in conspiracies, research suggests narcissists are particularly prone to believing in them, just as they are prone to believing in other odd or irrational phenomena. Cichocka et al. note, “Overall, meta-analytic effects ranging from r = 0.22 to r = 0.26 suggest that narcissism is one of the best psychological predictors of conspiracy beliefs.”
Link Psychology Today