Table of Contents

Introduction. Down the Rabbit Hole Chapter 1. The Age of Conspiracy Chapter 2. What's the Harm? Chapter 3. What is a Conspiracy Theory? Chapter 4. Conspiracy Minded Chapter 5. The Paranoid Fringe Chapter 6. I Want to Believe Chapter 7. (Official) Stories Chapter 8. Connect the Dots Chapter 9. Intention Seekers Chapter 10. Proportion Distortion Chapter 11. I Knew It Epilogue: Only Human

Promotional Information

The psychology of our belief in conspiracy theories

About the Author

Rob Brotherton is an academic psychologist and science writer who likes to walk on the weird side of psychology. Rob completed a doctoral degree on the psychology of conspiracy theories, and taught classes on why people believe weird stuff and science communication as a member of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit at Goldsmiths, University of London. He now lives in New York City. Rob writes about conspiracy theories on his website ConspiracyPsychology.com.

Reviews

Sophisticated and absorbing...This is a first-class book. It melds science, history and popular culture cleverly and with purpose. * Sunday Times *
A thought-provoking analysis and an appealing guide to thinking about conspiracies, real and imagined. * Wall Street Journal *
...presents a textured and often surprising look into the fascinating world of conspiracy theories. A world so often described as dark and shady is shown to be much closer to home than we could have first imagined. * The Psychologist *
Suspicious Minds details the various psychological 'quirks and shortcuts' that make us susceptible to conspiracy theories [...] offering a convincing argument against the common practice of tarring political opponents as conspiracy theorists. -- Adrian Chen * New York Times Book Review *
Clearly written and with liberal use of humor and numerous examples from scholarly research, this title provides a valuable look at why conspiracy theories abound and why we should continually assess our thinking. -- Richard Maxwell * 9/1 *
An enlightening and educational read. * How It Works *
In this fascinating, and often startling book, Rob Brotherton reveals that the crazy people may well be completely wrong in their beliefs, but they are no more crazy than you and me. * Fortean Times *