{"id":27800,"date":"2015-04-23T06:00:49","date_gmt":"2015-04-23T13:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.goodtherapy.org\/blog\/?p=27800"},"modified":"2018-06-06T09:11:18","modified_gmt":"2018-06-06T16:11:18","slug":"are-people-who-believe-in-conspiracy-theories-crazy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.goodtherapy.org\/blog\/are-people-who-believe-in-conspiracy-theories-crazy-0423157","title":{"rendered":"Is Belief in Conspiracy Theories a Sign of Mental Health Issues?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"LandingPop quiz: What do the moon landings, the JFK assassination, and the 9\/11 terrorist attacks have in common?<\/p>\n

Give up?<\/p>\n

While each event touched the lives of millions of people and left indelible marks on American history, there is a third similarity: these events were all staged \u2026 or so some people who believe in conspiracy theories may argue.<\/p>\n

Conspiracy theories posit that people, groups, organizations, or governments deliberately withhold or cover up the truth surrounding events and situations. While conspiracy theories\u00a0typically lack the concrete evidence of more conventional\u00a0explanations, they\u00a0nevertheless exist and are upheld within a percentage of the population.\u00a0Perhaps you’re not losing\u00a0sleep over an alleged alien spacecraft hidden somewhere near Roswell, New Mexico or deadly diseases supposedly manufactured as a means of population control, but some people are convinced that those in authority are working together to conceal the truth surrounding certain events.<\/p>\n

For some, there might be comfort in\u00a0thinking they know something most people don’t, but that doesn’t mean the\u00a0fringe is a comfortable place to be. For people who believe in explanations that differ from the mainstream or the historical record, their mental health may be called into question.<\/p>\n

\n\t

Find a Therapist<\/a><\/h2>\n\t
\n\n\t\t\t\n\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\tAdvanced Search<\/a>\n\t<\/form>\n<\/div>\n

Mistrust Isn\u2019t Always Misplaced<\/h2>\n

There is a rich history of conspiracy theories in the United States, partly because its democratic society allows for\u00a0free speech, partly because of its robust and shadowy intelligence community, and partly because, well, conspiracies in America have been uncovered before.<\/p>\n

During the Cold War, for example, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) conducted illegal scientific research to see if it could control people\u2019s minds. The CIA used LSD, hypnosis, and biological agents on people, often without their knowledge, to study how it affected their behavior. The program was conducted over two decades, enlisted the help of top researchers at more than 30 universities, and cost American taxpayers more than $20 million.<\/p>\n

While to many people that may sound\u00a0like a far-fetched idea cooked up on a\u00a0conspiracy theory website, the program was called Project MK-ULTRA and\u00a0was uncovered by an investigation headed by Senator Frank Church and Vice President Nelson Rockefeller in 1975.<\/p>\n

People who are believers in conspiracy theories are correct in their assertion that things are not always as they seem.<\/p>\n

Conspiracies and Public Perception<\/h2>\n

Conspiracy theories are often assumed to be the paranoid delusions of a troubled minority. However, a national survey published in April 2013 by Public Policy Polling shows that as many as 21% of Americans believe that an alien spaceship crashed in Roswell, and that the government covered it up.<\/p>\n

Some other results from the poll<\/a>\u00a0include:<\/p>\n