van Prooijen Jan-Willem, Douglas Karen M, De Inocencio Clara
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam The Netherlands.
The NSCR The Netherlands.
Eur J Soc Psychol. 2018 Apr;48(3):320-335. doi: 10.1002/ejsp.2331. Epub 2017 Sep 25.
A common assumption is that belief in conspiracy theories and supernatural phenomena are grounded in illusory pattern perception. In the present research we systematically tested this assumption. Study 1 revealed that such irrational beliefs are related to perceiving patterns in randomly generated coin toss outcomes. In Study 2, pattern search instructions exerted an indirect effect on irrational beliefs through pattern perception. Study 3 revealed that perceiving patterns in chaotic but not in structured paintings predicted irrational beliefs. In Study 4, we found that agreement with texts supporting paranormal phenomena or conspiracy theories predicted pattern perception. In Study 5, we manipulated belief in a specific conspiracy theory. This manipulation influenced the extent to which people perceive patterns in world events, which in turn predicted unrelated irrational beliefs. We conclude that illusory pattern perception is a central cognitive mechanism accounting for conspiracy theories and supernatural beliefs.
一种常见的假设是，对阴谋论和超自然现象的信念基于虚幻的模式感知。在本研究中，我们系统地检验了这一假设。研究1表明，这种非理性信念与在随机生成的抛硬币结果中感知模式有关。在研究2中，模式搜索指令通过模式感知对非理性信念产生间接影响。研究3表明，在混乱而非结构化的画作中感知模式可预测非理性信念。在研究4中，我们发现对支持超自然现象或阴谋论的文本的认同可预测模式感知。在研究5中，我们操纵了对特定阴谋论的信念。这种操纵影响了人们在世界事件中感知模式的程度，而这反过来又预测了不相关的非理性信念。我们得出结论，虚幻的模式感知是解释阴谋论和超自然信念的核心认知机制。
