To be or not to be...

Being in a social gathering and daydreaming...

"Oh, right now I could be writing".

Yep, The Curse of the Introvert, coming soon to cinemas.

Why we believe in conspiracy theories and how we can stop doing it

Image by Aurich Lawson, from the web ArsTechnica.

Nowadays we can find a vast range of conspiracy theories, including reptilians, chemtrails, the New World Order, MKUltra, secrets experiments with aliens in Area 51 and so on. As the BBC suggests, an immense number of people, regardless of social class, gender and age, accept at least one, if not a few, conspiracy theories. This happens because there is an unlimited quantity of these theories.

All these bizarre speculations have led scientists and historians to attempt to counteract them by means of comprehensive clarifications. For example, they have debunked in detail the theory that the Moon landings were hoaxes.

The heart of the matter is: What makes people believe conspiracy theories?

According to the website Live Science, people tend to have a predilection for conspiracy theories that parallel their political views. For instance, Republicans are more likely to believe that climate change is a tall story. On the other hand, citizens who entertain the idea of Bush destroying the Twin Towers are usually Democrats.

Nevertheless, it seems that certain people follow conspiracies of any sort in general, therefore it is likely that their particular psychological traits make them prone to do so.

One major factor that fosters conspiracy is "schizotypy". Schizotypy is a group of features that entails a disposition to cast doubt on conventional thinking, to have nonconformist beliefs and to perceive stimuli that are not actually present.

Schizotypy is also related to the fact that conspiracists need to feel unique. Thanks to their deviation from mainstream beliefs, they can distinguish themselves from the crowd, and simultaneously find comfort within a community of other people who think like them.

In addition, conspiracists have an exaggerated concern that the earth is unsafe. Thus they think that there are warnings indicating that ominous destruction is around the corner.

Apart from this, conspiracy believers most probably consider absurd quotes as enlightened. If they read a quote with a mysterious and deep air to it, their intuition tells them it must actually be really profound, even if it is pure nonsense. For example, at first sight the sentence "Wholeness quiets infinite phenomena" looks like an inspired quote, but in fact it makes no sense, though it is probably appreciated by people who usually follow their intuition and believe in the supernatural.

Finally, conspiracists see intention in almost everything, and even assign it to inanimate objects. Prof French affirms that humans are skilled at detecting patterns and repetition. However sometimes they go too far, and think there is purpose and meaningfulness when there is not. We are witnesses to events, and we instantly think that someone or something had motives to originate them. Typically, we detect certain concurrences in connection with major events and later we use them as elements of a narrative of our own creation. This story turns into a conspiracy theory as soon as it involves heroes and villains, the latter causing all the situations we detest. If we think about it, this is similar to our conception of politics. We frequently praise or condemn politicians for positive or negative happenings, while we really do not know how their policies influence the results, and besides, many situations are out of their control.

Other factors that have been mentioned as fostering conspiracy theories are feelings of impotence against a destiny that is beyond our control (but, as we have mentioned, it revolves around something significant, rather than arbitrary), and the human need to find explanations for events, by answering big questions by ourselves. Even if, in doing so, we do not come across the truth, we supposedly discover something that comforts us or that matches our world perspective.

Most often we create our convictions in ways that corroborate what we want to be valid. Having access to the media only makes certain people focus on misleading information. At the end of the day, we just need to feel comfortable, not to be rigorous. Since my individual vote does not really make a difference, if it makes me feel fine to affirm that George Bush blew up the Twin Towers, then the subconscious reward for having this point of view is probably larger than any retribution that I might suffer if my insights are incorrect.

Even with all that, conspiracy theories are still an enigma in the sense that humans habitually have belief systems, such as religion, which are generally positive and inspiring, in order to satisfy their emotional aims, such as the need to feel that everything is OK with them and their life. Nevertheless, conspiracy theories do not fit this pattern. Maybe we could affirm that if one sees perversion all around, at least they can point an accusing finger at others, and there is a gleam of hope that someone could take measures.

We also need to take into account that real incidents such as the Watergate Scandal, which involved a president taking part in a criminal conspiracy, have led American citizens to contemplate the possible authenticity of other secret plans being orchestrated by influential figures.

Now that we know the possible reasons of the origin of conspiracy theories, can we possibly mitigate them? A study from 2018 confirms this: if we give people a sense of control and we show them tangible ways for self-improvement and to make progress in their projects, they are less likely to hold absurd assumptions about the world. This can even be applied to companies too. If employers want to reduce rumours in the office, science suggests they should frequently talk with their workers about their goals and help them assimilate the necessary actions that they should take to achieve them.

Sources

• BBC News: Why so many people believe conspiracy theories.
• Buzzfeed. If Your Friend Likes Putting Terrible Inspo Quotes On Instagram, There Could Be A Scientific Reason.
• Inc. A New Study Has Found a Way to Stop People From Believing in Conspiracy Theories.
• LiveScience. Why people believe conspiracy theories.

La peinture abstraite

Je dois reconnaître que les œuvres abstraites sont un mystère pour moi!

Je me demande comment elles sont construites. Comment est-ce qu'on sait quand elles sont finies?

Peut-être cela fait partie de l'intuition et des émotions de l'artiste.

Peut-être elles sont pure forme, comme la poésie, incomprise par beaucoup.

Quoi qu'il en soit, excusez-moi les artistes, mais je considère la plupart comme un élément décoratif pour une maison ou comme une petite partie d'une œuvre figurative plus grande.

Sans titre, par Vassily Kandinsky.

Gossip

Photo from Positive Psychology Programme.

I’ve been reading a bit about gossip and, surprisingly, I’ve found two opposing points of view. 

According to one of them, gossip equals evil, and we should avoid it. Thus every time we indulge in gossip, we add bitterness and resentment to the narrative. I’ve been thinking that maybe that shapes or misdirects our way of thinking. I mean, you might not know all the details of the life of a person, but you get involved in those stories, which create a sort of caricature of a complex human being, focusing only on the morbid elements and their flaws. And, as we are made of stories, those images become ingrained in our subconscious. They are the references to paint a picture of that person in our mind, missing many of the soul's subtleties in the process. 

As we all know, gossip occurs when the object of gossip is not present. I’ve even witnessed a scene where my friends backbit someone else who was three metres ahead of them! That’s really what we could call talking behind someone’s back! I had been living in another town, so at that moment, I don’t know if it’s because I had lost the essence of our interactions and if my vision had become more neutral as a consequence, but that gesture seemed quite cruel to me. Well, I also think that I can be here writing about what’s right or wrong, and then I also make the same mistakes that I’m condemning. Anyway, this happens to all of us. Couldn’t it be that we follow a kind of cycle? First we set the standards for what is right or wrong, then we err and are blamed for that, and finally we redeem ourselves, and the cycle is completed.

On one of these occasions when we were talking about someone who had left the place twenty minutes ago, some of us could feel there was something shady in the atmosphere. Well, it was nothing but my birthday party and, late at night, we were meddling in the most scabrous details of someone’s life, a life which was out of control. When you thought about it and because of the nature of the problem, you could not find any solution to help that person, therefore it was really frustrating. One of our friends stated that we shouldn’t be talking about that person in that way during a party. Some months later, when it was her own birthday, she didn’t invite one of my friends and me to join them. Actually, the relationship that she and her boyfriend had with us all started to fade. I think she was right when she complained about our attitude during the party: it was a bitter situation that should have been addressed privately, even if many details looked very juicy! The good news is that the couple are going out again with the group from time to time.

As with most aspects of life, I’d say that the most desirable thing is to try to achieve balance. In one of TED talks, Jeff Conway offers a useful idea: we can redirect gossip and praise  the positive values of a person. I believe that would help to inspire the creation of the best version of others, as if we were a sort of Pygmalion.

Besides, there are so many other things to talk about! I can subscribe to the experience of feeling energized, cheerful and enriched when, with one friend, instead of gossiping, I talked about art, history, lifestyles, music and many other topics. Subsequently I realized that I needed to read and write more, because I didn’t know as much as I thought, and I wanted to explore all those fields in depth.

Apart from this, analysing the behaviour of others can also help our community to get better, as I have learned on the website "Psychology Today". It helps us to socialize, to become aware of the moral principles of our group, to perfect our own attitude, and to welcome newbies. The heart of the matter is how to do it without hurting others’ feelings significantly. In my opinion and according to the sources I’ve consulted, there are several ways to do this:

• Trying to get as much information as possible, since lack of information leads to speculation, and speculation leads to gossip.
• Asking lots of questions to different people before asserting something. We need to have different versions of the story. Clearly, a one-sided narrative takes us to a dead-end street.
• We should wonder if we are trying to find solutions or if we are just wallowing in the dirt. It's obvious which conduct should be encouraged.
• Talking with each person involved in the problem individually, in the most neutral and non-judgemental way, and then reaching our own conclusions sounds like a healthier strategy than exposing someone’s misfortunes before a large group.

Sources:

• The Principles of Gossip by Catherine Pulsifer.
• Redirecting Gossip: Jeff Conway at TEDxYouth@CampHill.
• Gossip Is a Social Skill, Not a Character Flaw.

Play it again, teacher

Students are continuously asking me to play music. So one day I carefully looked for lyrics with an enriching message, words easy to understand and a melody performed by a singer with a powerful voice. There it was, shining as pristine as Venus in her seashell: Beautiful, by Christina Aguilera. I removed some of the words in order to prepare the typical fill-in-the-gaps lyrics.

Learners' first reaction was that the tune looked like "music for old geezers". However, most of them completed the activity and showed the result proudly.

One of them had an additional proposal: "Teacher, now that we have all completed the assignment, you should reward us with a song that we actually like!"

So a song chosen by you, most probably about sexual depravity and/or drugs? Not in this dimension, my dear!

Photo of Christina Aguilera for the promotion of Fighter.

Dream jobs

Illustration from Fast Web.

Before coming to my school you might think that students dream of becoming astronauts, scientists, teachers or football players. Nevertheless, one day they tell you: "The ideal job is that of a porn star!" At least, being aware that they are able to hack porn accounts, you are certain that they're developing their... digital competence and entrepreneurial spirit, I guess.

Gratitude

“Take time daily to reflect on how much you have. It may not be all that you want but remember someone somewhere is dreaming to have what you have.” 

― Germany Kent.

Photo from Desiring God.

For example, something as simple as being able to go for a walk and observe pine trees, daisies and sparrows. You don't need to commit a crime and be jailed to miss all that. If you just get sick or have an accident and need to be hospitalised, the situation could seem something halfway between staying at a hotel and being in a prison.
So it's desirable to thank the universe for our blessings and enjoy them in body and soul when we have some free time. Instead of surfing the Internet all day, we could consider a variety of activities: visiting our family, going trekking, chatting with out friends at a bar, painting, writing a poem,...