People are more motivated to believe or create conspiracy theories that support their previous views in order to defend against negative feelings of being wrong and to bolster their ego. Conspiracy beliefs can help make sense of threatening events, provide a sense of control, or help those that are powerless or voiceless to explain their disadvantaged social reality. Studies have shown that individuals with low self-esteem, low sense of control, or high anxiety are more likely to have stronger conspiracy beliefs and engage more frequently in conspiratorial thinking.

Relationship Between Ego-Defense Motivation and Conspiracy Theories

The goal to defend the self from unpleasant emotional feelings such as fear.

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- Knowledge 
- Ego-defense
- Social Integration

Why People May Believe Conspiracy Theories

Albarracín, D. (2020). Conspiracy beliefs: Knowledge, ego-defense, and social integration. In R. Greifeneder, M. Jaffé, E. J. Newman, & N. Schwarz (Eds.), The psychology of fake news: Accepting, sharing, and correcting misinformation (pp. 196–219). London: Routledge. 

Conspiracy beliefs: Knowledge, ego-defense, and social integration

the goal is to get along with and be valued by other people

Social Integration Motivation

Ego-Defense Motivation 

The goal to form accurate and complete representations of the world.

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