A Specific Social Function of Rumors and Conspiracy Theories: Strengthening Community's Ties in Trouble Times. A Multilevel Analysis
Résumé
This paper hypothesizes that conspiracy theories and rumors are an act of social conformism. The evaluation of their plausibility, and their success, is collectively determinate regarding the established values of an in-group and the social context. In periods of troubles they flourish to reaffirm themselves and strengthen community's ties, structures and leaderships. After a theoretical introduction, I will demonstrate this assumption through a multilevel analysis (macro, meso, micro) which considers a wide range of social situations from the French Revolution to neighborhood conflicts and from open riots to latent crises.
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